


Abandonment Issues

by TalentlessYetPersistent



Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst and Feels, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-05-28 12:12:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6328651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TalentlessYetPersistent/pseuds/TalentlessYetPersistent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the aftermath of the Battle of Beacon, Team RWBY and friends must find ways to put the broken pieces of their lives back together.</p><p>A post-volume 3 fic following Yang's recovery, Weiss and Blake's isolation from their team, Ruby's journey to Mistral with the remaining members of Team JNPR, and the eventual reunion of Team RWBY.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Departure

“Yang? I brought you some cookies and milk!”

Ruby Rose entered her older sister’s bedroom without waiting for permission. It had been three weeks since the Battle of Beacon, and Yang was locked up tightly in her own head. She barely spoke to her family. She only got out of bed when it was completely necessary. Ruby suspected that if their father didn’t bring Yang her meals, she would lay immobile in her room until she starved to death.

Yang made no indication that she noticed Ruby enter the room. Her gaze was firmly planted on the lone window in her bedroom, like it always was these days. Ruby sighed and set the tray down on the nightstand. “Let me guess. You’re not hungry.”

Immediately Ruby regretted the words that came out of her mouth. “I’m sorry Yang, I didn’t mean… I just wanted to come see you.”

No response. Ruby sat down on the edge of the bed and gently placed her left hand over Yang’s. She stiffened a little at the physical contact, but did not draw her hand away. She also did not look away from the window. 

“Does your bandage need changed?”

“Dad did it this morning.”

It was the first time Ruby had heard Yang’s voice in over four days, even though she spent a sizable portion of every day with her. It was cracked, quiet and indistinct. Gone were the musical tones on the verge of breaking into laughter at any given moment.  
Ruby felt a lump forming in her throat, but swallowed it fiercely. She had to be strong for Yang, and being strong meant that she couldn’t let her sister see her cry. Once the tightness in her chest eased up to a manageable level, Ruby cut straight to the chase.

“There’s something I wanted to talk to you about, sis.”

Yang turned her head towards her sister, and lilac eyes met silver. Ruby’s heart ached for her. There was so much pain where there once was fire and exuberance. It was hard for the young huntress to bear the knowledge that she could do nothing to ease her big sister’s suffering. She felt the lump in her throat threatening to return.

“I talked to Uncle Qrow yesterday. He said to find Ozpin, we need to go to Haven.”

Yang’s eyes narrowed, flickering a bright shade of red for just a moment. 

“So?”

“So we need to find him, Yang!”

“Why? Why us, huh?! Haven’t we given enough to this stupid fight?!” Yang’s fiery eyes and the pain oozing from every word shouted made Ruby wince. “We’ve lost our mothers, our friends, blood-” Yang waved her maimed right arm at Ruby, simultaneously yanking her remaining hand from under her sister’s. “Do we need to give up our lives like Mom did? Like Pyrrha did?”

It was Yang’s turn to regret her words as tears welled up in her baby sister’s eyes. “Ruby, I’m-”

“We’re Huntresses, Yang. That’s why. We give everything we have to protect people.” Ruby choked the words out while tears splashed into her lap.

“Ruby… I never really wanted to be a Huntress. I wanted to go on adventures and lead a full, exciting life. Helping people was just a byproduct of that.” Yang’s eyes were solemn again as she looked at the bandage on what remained of her arm. “And now I can’t do any of those things anymore.” She added quietly. “I’m useless.”

“No you’re not.” Ruby said, sniffling. “Yang Xaio Long, you are not useless. And no matter what reasons you have, you are a Huntress. You help people. You saved Blake’s life-”

“Don’t.” Yang’s eyes flared red again. “Don’t say her name.”

“I’m sorry, sis.” Ruby stared into her lap, quietly crying.

“Me too Ruby.”

Yang took her sister’s hand again, and Ruby squeezed it tight. They sat in silence for a few moments before Ruby returned to the conversation she intended on having with her sister.

“Yang, I have to go to Haven. I have to find Ozpin. Whatever happened at Beacon… That was just the beginning. And I can’t let what happened to Pyrrha-” Ruby choked up again and looked her sister directly in the eyes. “I can’t let anyone else die.” 

“Ruby…”

“No, Yang. I have to go.” Ruby was sobbing openly now. “I know it’s dangerous. I know our enemies are capable of killing me, but I can’t live with myself if I don’t fight. So it doesn’t matter how dangerous it is. I have to go, even if I’m scared.”

Ruby buried her head into Yang’s neck, hugging her tight. “I’m sorry. I love you so much, Yang. You’ve always been there to protect me. But I don’t have a choice. I have to go. Please don’t hate me for leaving you.” Her muffled words dissolved into incoherent weeping. 

Those last words stabbed Yang Xaio Long in the heart, and she began crying too. She wrapped her left arm around Ruby and pressed her face into the top of her head. 

“Ruby, you’re my baby sister. I love you with all of my heart. I could never hate you.” Yang whispered through the tears soaking her cheeks and her sister’s hair. “And I don’t hate Blake either. I just-” She shut her eyes tightly and shook her head as a fresh wave of anguish racked her body. “I can’t talk about it yet. It hurts too much.”

The two sisters held each other for a long time without saying anything, finding some much needed solace in their embrace. After Ruby’s sobbing ceased and her ragged breathing became slow and regular again, Yang planted a gentle kiss on the top of her head. Ruby looked up, and for the first time in nearly a month, saw a slight smile on her sibling’s face. It was a shadow of the boisterous grin that used to grace Yang’s features- not nearly as full of joy as Ruby remembered it- but it was a start. Ruby returned the smile weakly.

“I just… I couldn’t leave without telling you why. I can’t tell Dad, because he’ll try to stop me.”

“I want to try and stop you myself, little sis. But I can’t. I get why you’re going. It’s who you are, Ruby. You’re a Huntress, through and through. Just please tell me you’re not going alone.”

“I’m not. Jaune, Nora and Ren are meeting me here tomorrow morning. We’re going together.”

Yang pulled Ruby into another tight hug. “You guys be safe out there. And Ruby Rose, you had better come back to me or I’ll single handedly hunt you down.”

Ruby jerked away from Yang, eyes wide. It slowly dawned on the maimed blonde brawler what she had just said, and the two sisters collapsed into laughter.

“I love you, Yang. And I’m going to miss you while I’m gone.”

“I love you too, Ruby.”

 

\----------

 

“Ruby!”

Yang’s eyes snapped open at the sound of her father’s panicked shouting. She sighed and closed them again. Yang knew from her conversation with Ruby the previous evening that her sister was dead-set on leaving the safety of their father’s home in favor of seeking… revenge? Justice?

Maybe a little bit of both.

Whatever was motivating the young Huntress, Yang was grateful for the catharsis the two had shared before Ruby set out on her journey. For the first time since the Battle of Beacon, Yang had _felt something_. It may have been the emotional equivalent of having stitches torn open and the resultant wound filled with wasps, but after three weeks of numbness, even raw pain was breath of fresh air. 

“Yang!” Taiyang burst into the bedroom, wide eyed and pale. “Yang, wake up!”

“I am awake.” Yang didn’t even bother opening her eyes. 

“Yang, Ruby’s gone! She-”

“-Went to Haven to look for Ozpin.” 

Yang took a deep breath and opened her eyes, looking up at her father. His frightened expression transformed into one of anger. “How did you know? Did she tell you?”

“Yes, Dad. She did. And before you ask, she didn’t tell you because she knew you’d react like this.” Taiyang had started to interrupt, but closed his mouth and furrowed his brow, his rage thinly veiled.

“I’m not allowed to be worried about the well being of my daughter? Even after you-” His expression softened. “Even after you got hurt?” Tai shook his head. “Aren’t you worried?”

“I definitely don’t _want_ anything bad to happen to Ruby. But I think the only way you were going to keep her here was by chaining her up. And I’m not so sure that would have worked either.” Yang closed her eyes again. “You know Ruby, and you know I’m right. Her leaving to rejoin the fight was inevitable.” Yang sighed again. She was drained, a hydroelectric dam in the middle of a dried up riverbed.

Taiyang began pacing back and forth in front of Yang’s bed. “I need to find Qrow, get him to bring her back-” He started, but his daughter swiftly interrupted him.

“Dad, who do you think told Ruby to look for Ozpin in Haven?”

Taiyang’s blue eyes widened in shock while he processed this thought. Yang could practically see the gears turning underneath her father’s unkempt blond hair, and she braced herself for the explosion that would follow once it all clicked into place. His eyes narrowed into slits, and when he spoke next, it was with a voice that can only be described as the eye of a hurricane.

“I need to find Qrow. And when I do, I’m going to beat him senseless for planting these ideas in your sister’s head.”

_“Dad.”_

Yang sat up in her bed and swung her legs over the edge in one swift movement. “You don’t get it, do you? There was nothing - _I mean nothing_ \- that could have stopped Ruby from taking off. Do you not know your daughter at all?” She put her hand to her forehead before continuing. “If you’re going to blame Qrow for telling Ruby where to start looking for Ozpin, then you have to blame me for reading her so many fairy tales as a child. You have to blame yourself for sending her to Signal and Beacon. And maybe you have to blame yourself for being a Huntsman in the first place.” Yang looked up into her father’s eyes.

“This is who Ruby is. Above all else, she wants to help people. Do you know what she said to me last night? She told me ‘I can’t live with myself if I don’t fight. So it doesn’t matter how dangerous it is. I have to go.’”

 _‘…even if I’m scared.’_ Yang chose to keep the end of that sentence a secret between sisters.

Taiyang’s eyes drifted to the bedroom window, his mind racing. He began pacing again. “Nothing you say can change the fact that I’m worried sick about Ruby. She’s too young, Yang.” He stopped at the window and leaned on the ledge, taking in the snowy winter morning. “I’ve lost too much to this fight, and I can’t bear the thought of losing Ruby too.”

Taiyang suddenly found himself lost in painful memories. Images flickered through his mind in a rapid succession. A young Ruby, perhaps only four years old, sheepishly admitting that she had eaten all of the chocolate in the kitchen. Yang reading stories to her baby sister by the fire, purple eyes focused intently on the book in her hands, unable to see the absolute rapture in Ruby’s face as she listened. An afternoon spent long ago with Summer Rose, pregnant with Ruby, and Yang -my god, she must have been only two or three, so precious in a brown and yellow dress and short pigtails- in a meadow full of flowers, smiling and laughing and planning their future as a family.

Taiyang started as he felt Yang’s hand descend on his shoulder. The two of them shared a meaningful glance, then both returned to the pristine frozen landscape outside.

“Uncle Qrow won’t let anything bad happen to Ruby, Dad. And she’s not out there alone, either. She has friends from Beacon with her.” Yang’s hand fell from her father’s shoulder, and they stood quietly together for a moment.

“Hey Dad? Can we go for a walk later?”

Taiyang looked at his daughter with mixed emotions. Pride and sorrow and sympathy and love and a hundred other nebulous feelings converged and multiplied in his chest until it felt like he would collapse under their weight.

“Sure, Yang.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm very new to writing fanfic, and this is my first submission ever. Truth be told, I had to work up the courage to post this for about three weeks, but I hope you all enjoyed it!


	2. Baby Steps

The winter sun had retreated behind the cover of clouds, creating a much gloomier atmosphere in the forests of Patch. Ruby Rose and her three young companions trudged dutifully onward down the path leading to the ferry station. Nora and Ren led the group through twists and turns, and everything was whisper quiet, save for the crunch of rocks and dirt underneath the warriors' feet.

Winter had always been Ruby's favorite season, partially because of this tranquility. Oftentimes, stillness and Ruby Rose had no business with each other, but there was something about a coating of pure white snow on tree branches and the lack of activity that bestowed her a sense of peace that no other season could provide. For a girl whose normal operating speed was somewhere around a thousand miles an hour, the cold months of the year were a much needed rest period during which she could organize her thoughts.

It was unfortunate that this winter, there were far too many things rocketing around in Ruby's brain for her to fully take advantage of it. The mental clutter was piled too high for one single girl to successfully clean up and rearrange into something that made sense. It didn't stop her from trying, though.

“It's kind of nice, not being in the lead for once.” Ruby remarked to Jaune.

“Huh?” 

It seemed as if Ruby had pulled Jaune out of a pit of quicksand deep within his mind when she spoke. A slight frown drooped across her face for a moment, but it was fleeting. She gestured at Nora and Ren in front of them and repeated herself. “I just said it's kind of nice to not be in the lead for once. It can get exhausting.”

“You're telling me.” Jaune mumbled quietly. He shook the last of the muck from his mind and continued. “Nora and Ren are probably the best choices to lead us right now. They did grow up outside the kingdoms, after all. They know how to survive extended trips through the wilderness like this.” He stared at his teammates, and for a moment, Ruby thought that he had receded back into his head. “It's really amazing, what Ren and Nora are capable of. All the things they've been through... People don't give them nearly enough credit.”

Ruby nodded in agreement, though Jaune didn't see it; He had returned to staring at the road directly in front of them. The ensuing pause in conversation threatened to stretch itself out indefinitely, and Ruby was just about settled back into her thoughts when Jaune broke the silence. “How's Yang doing?”

“She's...” Ruby desperately wanted to say _“She's okay”_ or _“She's recovering well”_ or even just _“She's recovering”_ , but none of those things were true. “She's not adjusting very well. She hardly gets out of bed, she barely speaks to either me or Dad... It's just really hard on her.” Ruby's eyes lowered to the ground to match Jaune's. “And I hate that I left her behind.” 

Ruby considered explaining further about how badly Blake's disappearance hurt her sister, and how Blake was just the latest person in Yang's life to have deserted her with no explanation. She desperately wanted to confide in someone, to have her fears assuaged. She needed reassurance that no, Ruby, you didn't abandon your sister, and she's going to be okay, and you and Yang and Blake and Weiss are all going to find each other and be a team again.

But Weiss was back in Atlas with her father and sister. Yang still needed time to heal, both emotionally and physically. Blake was... gone.

And Jaune surely had enough going on in his own head that he didn't need any of Ruby's burdens. So she kept her eyes on the forest path, and pushed her doubts and fears to the back of her mind.

“Hey, there's the ferry station!” Nora exclaimed before sprinting ahead of her three friends. Ren sighed.

“Nora, we're all supposed to stick together!” Ren knew before the words had left his mouth that it was a lost cause trying to call out to his partner. He began running after the dust trail Nora had left in her wake.

Ruby stifled a giggle. “Come on, Jaune, it looks like we need to pick up the pace a little.” A faint smile tugged at the corners of Jaune's mouth, and the two of them scampered down the road towards the waterfront. Above the scene, a large black bird circled the area for a moment before winging off towards the west.

\-----

Under the same iron gray sky, while Ruby and the remaining member of Team JNPR were on a ferry halfway between Patch and Vale, Yang and her father were on their fourth lap around the sizable pasture attached to their home. The moment was quiet. While his daughter seemed indifferent to the stillness in the air, Taiyang found it heavy and uncomfortable. He wanted his vivacious and grinning daughter back. He wanted to repair all the cracks in the shuffling form next to him. He wanted to make her laugh, to make her feel safe. Above all? He wanted to give her hope.

But Taiyang Xaio Long knew the grieving process. He had a seemingly unfair amount of opportunities to familiarize himself with loss in his life, and he understood that the only person who could truly help Yang was Yang. That knowledge didn't do much to lift his spirits, but it was a fact.

Of course, there were always anomalies that challenged things taken for granted as set in stone. It was entirely possible that there was a person out there who could help Yang back to her feet, even after a blow as devastating as the one she had taken. For Taiyang, that person gave him eight years of happiness and one wonderful daughter... Before delivering him directly back into the hands of grief, skinned raw and screaming.

He shook his head in the way one tries to clear water from ear canals after a swim. There was more than enough misery to go around here in the present, and it would be incredibly selfish of him to use Yang's situation as an excuse to wallow in self pity, no matter how badly he felt he deserved it.

Instead, Taiyang forced himself to celebrate the small victories that had come his way today. Certainly he was worried about Ruby's well being, but underneath his concern, there was a sense of pride in his youngest daughter. Despite all of the awful things she had experienced three weeks prior, she never shut down. She never lost hope, and her resolve never wavered. 

And Yang had left the house for the first time since losing her arm, of her own accord at that! It felt like a good omen, knowing even though the fire in his daughter's heart may have been extinguished, there were still embers smoldering, yearning to erupt into flames once more. 

Taiyang knew that there could be too much of a good thing, though, and determined that this short walk had been triumph enough for one day. The gloom in the air had deepened during their stroll, signaling evening's hasty approach.

“Are you ready to go inside, Yang? It's pretty cold out here. I was thinking we could use a cup of tea to warm up.”

“I wanna stay out here just a little longer, Dad. You go on ahead.”

“Yang...” Concern shone in Taiyang's eyes, which his daughter rewarded with a faint smile.

“I really do mean just a little longer. Come get me when the tea's finished.”

“Okay honey.” Taiyang smiled in return before heading into the house. 

Yang watched her father retreat, and the smile fell from her face. She leaned against the fence, utterly exhausted from the physical activity. The truth was, she did want to go inside and have a hot drink to warm up, but she was too embarrassed by the thought of having to lean on her father's shoulder to make it to the house.

“Stupid,” She muttered under her breath. The cold winter air burned her lungs and nostrils. Her legs ached, despite the fact that the fence was now doing most of the work in supporting her weight. Yang looked down at the sleeve of her jacket, dangling limp and empty at her right side. 

Yang knew that there were a great many things that she would no longer be able to do after losing her arm. But she never dreamed that something as simple as walking around her father's property line would become a Herculean task. Frustration welled up inside of Yang until it spilled from her eyes, hot tears of anger and helplessness rapidly cooling on her windburned cheeks. 

She desperately needed to scream, to punch something, to do anything at all to purge the fury burning inside of her. 

But that was the crux of the problem. She couldn't do anything, not in her current state. Yang was too weak. And her normal response to anger- violently punching the source of her rage until it went away- was definitely out of the question. 

Just as quickly as it had overwhelmed her, Yang's temper receded. She wiped her eyes and took a deep, ragged breath. All of her life, she had been blessed with a natural strength. Yang was a perpetual motion machine, inexhaustable as she tore through any and all obstacles in her path with ease and grace. Every new challenge was greeted with a flirtatious wink and a smile. Her mastery of physical combat was almost instinctual- like a baby bird spreading its wings and jumping out of the nest for the first time. Sure, there was a time of uncertainty and fright while plummeting to the ground, but once wings started beating, Yang _soared._

And yet, here she was, completely winded from walking less than a mile. _Walking._ Not running, not fighting off hordes of Beowolves, just the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other. 

She was beginning to wonder if strength was a finite resource. 

“Yang? Tea's ready!” Taiyang called out as he approached, breaking Yang's thought process. She gathered all the willpower she could summon and began walking towards the house. 

By the time she reached the door, Yang's legs shook from the effort. Her father's eyes widened in shock as he rushed to her side. “Sheesh, are you alright honey? You look wiped out.”

“I'm okay. I feel like I just ran to Vacuo and back, but other than that-” Yang stumbled a little, catching herself on Taiyang's shoulder. “Yeah, I'm worn out.” Yang cursed herself. Despite all her efforts, here she was, standing upright only with the help of her father. If only she had reached a little deeper, searched a little harder for that seemingly infinite well of determination that once was always within arm's reach... 

But that was par for the course, Yang thought bitterly. No matter how hard she tried, she was always a day late and a dollar short. 

“Here, let's get you back in bed. I'll bring the tea to your room.” Yang obediently placed her arm over her father's shoulders, too tired to protest, and let him bear her weight as they climbed the stairs to Yang's bedroom. He helped her out of her jacket, and she collapsed backwards into bed. Taiyang gently placed a blanket over her before heading back downstairs to get the tea tray. 

When he returned just seconds later, Yang was already asleep, snoring gently. 

\-----

The ferry from Patch arrived in Vale harbor as dusk settled in the air. In the half-light of approaching night, Vale looked more like the ruins of an ancient civilization turned tourist trap than a bustling Kingdom capital. As Ruby, Jaune, Nora and Ren stepped onto the docks, they all instinctively looked in the direction of Beacon Academy. Instead of seeing the familiar inviting yellow glow in the distance, a shroud of mist hung ominously over the horizon. The group shared an uneasy glance.

All of them knew what happened that night three weeks ago. It wasn't possible to live through an experience like that and forget about it. But the mind was generally a forgiving, benevolent entity that softened the focus on traumatic memories for the sake of survival. 

Standing in the shadow of the battleground that had cost them all so much took those memories and transformed them from impressionist paintings into photographs. 

“Well, let's see if we can find out when the next boat to Mistral is leaving.” Ruby said, bringing the uncomfortable moment to a close. The four set off down the docks towards the administrative offices.

Ruby approached the ticket booth just as the woman behind the counter was preparing to close the shutters. “Wait, miss!” She ran the remaining distance, placing both hands on the counter. “I'm sorry to bother you at closing time, but when does the next ship leave for Mistral?”

The woman gave Ruby a withering glare, clearly annoyed that this little girl and her three friends were preventing her from going home on time. Ruby held the woman's gaze without flinching, and after a brief staring contest, the woman rubbed her eyes. 

“Have you been living under a rock the past three weeks? The CCT is down. It's absolute chaos around here. There's no ships traveling between the kingdoms, either commercial or transport. Now if you'll excuse me-” The woman nodded curtly and closed the shutters.

“Well... Now what?” Jaune asked. It had never occurred to any of them that Vale Harbor would be on lockdown.

“Well, we can't just swim to Haven.” Ruby said, sitting down against the ticket booth. 

“Oooh, I know! We can steal a boat!” Nora gasped, eyes wide. “We could be _pirates!_ ”

“Nora, none of us even knows how to drive a car, let alone run a ship.” Ren sighed, taking a seat next to Ruby, who was trying to suppress her laughter.

“Well I don't hear anyone _else_ making any suggestions!” Nora folded her arms, nose in the air. 

“Guys, it's starting to get dark. We need to find somewhere to stay for the night.” Jaune pointed out. Ruby nodded in agreement as an audible growl emitted from her stomach. The sandwiches they had shared on the ferry from Patch seemed like a lifetime ago. 

“Maybe we should get some food too. I'm starving.” Ruby moaned, rising to her feet to lead the group into the softly lit streets of Vale in search of nourishment and rest. Their journey would continue in the morning, but for tonight, Ruby was looking forward to enjoying the comforts of the city she had fondly called home for the past year of her life.

But as the night wore on, Ruby realized more and more acutely that Vale as she knew it was gone. It started at the cafe where the four savored a meal of noodles and fresh vegetables. The food was excellent, but Ruby found herself often looking to the street outside the restaurant. In days past, Vale was positively buzzing with activity, the streets full of friends and families laughing with each other, businessmen hurrying to their next important meeting, vendors hawking their wares from storefronts... Now the sidewalks were empty, save for the occasional small group huddled close together, and the only noise came from the police trucks that roamed the city sporadically. 

As she laid awake in the room she and her companions had rented for the evening, Ruby longed for the familiarity of her team's dorm room back at Beacon; Blake's gentle tossing and turning, Weiss' slow, regular breathing that whistled quietly out of her nose on every exhale, her sister's odd snore that rose above the murmur of voices from adjacent dorm rooms every now and then. 

Ruby rolled onto her side, listening to Nora babble in her sleep. She loved Jaune, Nora and Ren. There was no doubt about that. Jaune was the first friend she had made at Beacon Academy, when the two of them were both lost and anxious, wondering if they had made the right decision in attending the school. Nora and Ren, she didn't know very well. But the spark of enthusiasm that the excitable redhead brought to everything she did was infectious, and Ruby always appreciated her presence. Ren, on the other hand, was the polar opposite of his partner. He was the good angel on your shoulder, the voice of reason. A source of calm in the midst of a world gone mad.

Ruby loved her friends dearly. But she missed her teammates. 

 

When Ruby awoke, it was to an empty room. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, taking a moment to clear the haze of sleep from her mind before getting dressed and heading downstairs.

She found her comrades seated around a small table. Ren and Jaune were poring over a map, while Nora waged war on her second stack of pancakes. “Morning Ruby!” She said cheerfully through a mouthful of food. Ruby smiled.

“Hey guys. Any ideas yet?” Ruby grabbed an apple from the fruit basket on the table and sat down opposite Jaune. 

“Yeah. Walking. Lots and lots of walking.” Jaune sighed.

Ruby furrowed her brow. “But Mistral is on another continent. We can't just walk there.”

Ren turned the map so that Ruby could follow his finger as it blazed a trail across the kingdom. “There is a village here on the eastern shore of Vale, where the gap between Vale and Mistral is narrowest. Once we arrive, we can hire one of the local fishermen to ferry us to Mistral.” Ren traced a short line across the water separating the two kingdoms. 

“And then, lots and lots of walking.” Jaune repeated, looking exhausted just by the thought of it. 

“If I had known there were no ships traveling between the kingdoms, I would have suggested we wait for warmer weather to start this journey.” Ruby frowned. But there was no turning back now; If Ruby went back home to Patch, Taiyang would never let her out of his sight again, and she would never find Ozpin.

“There's another way, you know.”

The gruff voice behind Ruby made her nearly jump out of her hood. She leaped to her feet and spun around, facing the dark haired man before her. “Uncle Qrow?! What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same, pipsqueak.” He smirked. “Left the nest again, I see. Do you have any idea what that's doing to your father's emotional health? Or your sister?” 

“I left him a note! And I told Yang I was going!” Ruby scoffed, but Qrow refused to break eye contact with his niece. “...I didn't want to leave. But I had to.” Ruby cast her eyes to the floor. “We have to find Professor Ozpin.”

“Yeah, we do. But 'we' doesn't necessarily include you, kiddo.” Qrow regarded his niece with a stern glance. “What about your friends here? Do they know what they're getting themselves into?” His eyes moved around the table before his vision was filled with silver.

“They're Pyrrha's teammates.” Ruby glared at her uncle as he towered over her. Qrow's expression softened as he again looked at the remaining members of team JNPR. Ren's attention was focused on Nora, who avoided his gaze, fighting back tears. Jaune stared directly into the scarlet eyes of Ruby's uncle, furious and stone faced.

“I'm sorry. But I need to know that you all understand.”

“Yeah? Well, we get it.” Jaune's voice trembled, and Ruby had to wonder if it was grief or anger that made her friend's voice crack.

“Take it easy, tough guy.” Qrow narrowed his eyes. “You four are about to go up against the deadliest enemies humanity has ever known, and none of you even finished a full year at Beacon. Forgive me for suggesting maybe you've bitten off more than you can chew.” He grabbed a chair from a nearby table and sat down. Ruby followed his lead.

Qrow's words had knocked the wind out of the group's sails, but before they had a chance to fully contemplate their meaning, he continued. “I admire your spirit, kids. I really do. But I can't have your blood on my hands. That's why I can't-” 

“Uncle Qrow, we-” Ruby started to interrupt, but he placed a single finger on her lips.

“That's why I can't let you go. Not yet. You haven't trained enough. Cinder Fall has claimed the lives of Huntsmen and Huntresses far more skilled than yourselves.” Qrow paused for a moment, allowing his words to sink in. “What I need you to do is sit tight here in Vale. Just for a few days while I make arrangements.” He added as Ruby opened her mouth to protest. 

“Arrangements?” Ruby questioned. 

“Look, I'll be back for you in four days.” Qrow stood up, placing a small stack of Lien on the table. “Use this to pay for the room and your meals.” He turned to leave, but Ruby's hand shot out and grabbed her uncle's wrist.

“Wait! Where are you going?” Ruby pleaded. Qrow snickered as he peeled Ruby's hand away.

“A girl can't give away all her secrets, now can she?” With a small wink, Qrow turned his back on his niece and exited the inn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Don't worry everyone- the real fun and angst is coming reeeaal soon. =D


	3. Arrangements

No matter how many times he had been there, Qrow Branwen could never shake his intense dislike for the kingdom of Atlas. It was a stark, minimalist place; All blinding white and sharp, angular architecture that was intended to represent strength and unity, but the end result was a city without a soul. The people of Atlas, too, were by and large no more animated or vivacious than the countless military droids that patrolled the city. Once in awhile, when looking out over the city from the upper levels of the CCT, a spark of color would stand out amongst all of the neutral-toned clothing on a crowded sidewalk, and Qrow would smile in a bittersweet way.

He cast a glance around the military base where the airship had landed. It was a vast, sprawling complex of buildings, runways and hangars, swarming with both soldiers and robots. Qrow shook off the nagging cold of the nigh-perpetual Atlesian winter with a long pull from his flask, then headed into the nearest building. He sullenly obliged with the demands of the security checkpoints inside as he snaked through dull gray labrynthine corridors, past offices and meeting rooms and munitions stockpiles, until finally reaching the cavernous Central Security Annex. He paused in the doorway, taking another swig from his flask before crossing the threshold.

He walked past rows and rows of computer terminals, each one displaying the view from an Atlesian Knight's optical sensors as it roamed the kingdom. The robots were mostly autonomous, but after the Knights had been hacked during the Battle of Beacon, the remaining units were modified so that each one could be remotely controlled or shut down by a human member of the Atlas military. 

He approached the central platform, where a tall, broad shouldered man stood before myriad holographic projection screens. “Hey Jimmy.” Qrow said, a twinkle of mischief in his eye.

The man sighed, turning around to face the lanky dark haired Huntsman. “Qrow, I have asked you multiple times to not call me that, especially in front of my men.” His eyes gravitated to the flask still in Qrow's hand. “And you need to put _that_ away immediately. Ozpin may have been... _generous_ in his leniency, but this is a military facility. You need to act appropriately when you're here.”

“Yes sir, General Ironwood!” Qrow snapped to attention, saluting the stern man with his right hand, which was still gripping his flask. Ironwood's eyes narrowed dangerously and he spoke through gritted teeth.

“Come on. Let's go to my office.” Ironwood brushed past Qrow, stopping at one of the desks that circled the platform. “Send Winter to my office at her earliest convenience.” He said curtly to the cadet, who gave him a swift nod and began tapping away at his computer. Qrow stuck his hands in his pockets and slouched after the general, back through the rows of terminals and the nameless military personnel operating them. A few short twists and turns later, and Ironwood was shutting a heavy mahogany door behind them. He leaned against his desk, one gloved hand covering his face while he collected his thoughts.

“Qrow, why are you here?” Ironwood's hand dropped to his side and he looked up at the unkempt red eyed Huntsman standing in the center of the room. “There's an order to this. You know all of our meetings are scheduled.” 

Qrow rolled his eyes.“Yeah yeah, I broke your precious protocol. If it makes you feel any better, you can consider me extremely early for our next meeting.”

The two men stood opposite each other, refusing to break eye contact. Ironwood was not accustomed to this sort of situation; It wasn't often that he was on the losing side of a battle of wills.

“That doesn't answer my question.” The general sighed as Qrow began unscrewing the cap of his flask again. “Please tell me you actually had a reason to come here and disrupt me.”

Qrow stiffened for a moment, a dangerous gleam in his eye. “Oh no, James, I just thought I'd drop in. You know how much I love Atlas and its soul-dead atmosphere.” He tightened the cap on his flask, and the sarcastic Huntsman's demeanor suddenly grew deadly serious. “You should know why I'm here.”

Ironwood's eyes narrowed. “Your niece?”

Qrow clapped his hands slowly. “Ding ding! Fifty tokens for the big tall general.” Ironwood stepped forward, coming nose to nose with his unwelcome visitor.

“Enough games, Branwen.” The general's voice dripped with quiet, icy venom as he spoke. “Either you get to the point, or I will personally remove you from the Kingdom. “

Qrow smirked, but his red eyes showed no trace of mirth as he returned Ironwood's intense glare, his hands defiantly on his hips. 

“Try me.”

A knock at the door forced Ironwood to back down and regain his composure. “Enter.” He said curtly. The large mahogany door swung open slowly, and a tall, white haired woman dressed in the white and blue Atlesian military uniform walked into the room. Her fine, angular facial features contorted into a look of disgust as she regarded Qrow.

“Why are _you_ here?” 

“Jimmy already asked me that, Ice Queen.” Qrow winked at the woman, who responded by balling her hands into fists. “And I was getting ready to answer him when he threatened to- What was it?” He glanced over Ironwood's stern expression. “That's right- 'Personally remove me from the Kingdom' were the words he chose. You Atlesians always try to use violence to solve every problem.” Qrow wandered over to an armchair and plopped down in it. “Because, you know, that's worked out _so well_ recently.” 

The woman started towards Qrow with hatred boiling in her blue eyes.

“Schnee. Stand down.” Ironwood barked, and she stopped dead in her tracks. She continued to glare at Qrow, quivering with rage. 

The three of them shared a tense moment of silence before Qrow stood up, spreading his arms wide. “Alright, I'll just get to the point since we seem to be skipping the whole 'fond greetings and small talk' portion of the meeting.” Winter snorted derisively, which Qrow promptly ignored. “As you know, I've been keeping tabs on our little silver eyed warrior while she recovers on Patch. Well, she's not there anymore.”

General Ironwood's eyes widened slightly at the news, but before he could interrupt, Qrow continued. “She and the three remaining members of Team JNPR are currently en route to Mistral. Their best plan involved a journey on foot across the lands outside the Kingdom to the eastern shores of Vale, but that's too unpredictable. Beacon was proof that our enemies have many more agents than we previously believed. I've made contact with them, and convinced them to stay put in Vale for the next couple of days while we plan our next move.”

“Why, exactly, is Ruby Rose on her way to Mistral?” Ironwood inquired, eyes narrowed at Qrow. “How did she know that our enemies' trail leads to Haven, unless...”

“Okay, maybe I let some information slip.” Qrow shrugged off Ironwood's angry glare. “She was bound to do _something_ , and I thought it better if I had an idea of what that something was, understand? By dropping a hint about Haven, I knew that's where she would go. I just didn't expect her to go so soon.” 

“So let me get this straight.” Winter crossed her arms, giving Qrow a stern look. “You told a _child_ sensitive information about the whereabouts of our most dangerous enemies, because _you knew she would seek them out?_ Are you out of your mind?” 

Qrow slumped his shoulders and rolled his eyes, turning to face Winter. “Thanks for the recap, princess. Next time, instead of treating Ruby like the Huntress she is, I'll just have her dad whisk her away to another continent and lock her up in the old ancestral home like she's a Faberge Egg.” 

Winter's face turned a deep shade of crimson. “How DARE you-” She sputtered, totally consumed by indignation and rage, but Qrow raised his voice and continued.

“Which is actually why I'm here. I want to request an Atlesian airship be dispatched to Vale, in order to bring Ruby and the remaining members of Team JNPR here to Atlas under the guise of continuing their training.” Qrow retrieved his flask from his pocket. Winter began shouting at Qrow once again as he calmly unscrewed the cap and took a long, slow pull of the liquor within.

“You come here unannounced, after defying orders to keep your niece confined on Patch until further notice, you insult my family, and then you have the gall to ask a favor of us?” She came face to face with Qrow, her voice rising in intensity to a volume that would cause lesser men to cower in fear. “To use official Atlesian military equipment to travel into hostile territory to fix your fuc-”

“ **Winter!** ” Ironwood slammed his metal fist onto his desk, cutting her off mid sentence. “Stand. Down.” The general quickly moved to Winter's side. “I share your outrage, but ultimately, I have to grant Qrow's request.” Winter's jaw dropped, incoherent noises of surprise escaping from her lips. “Ruby Rose... She's very important. We have to keep her safe. And there's nowhere in the world safer than Atlas.”

Ironwood turned to address Qrow. “You will set out tomorrow evening to retrieve your niece and the other students from Beacon. As per protocol, the airship will under no circumstances depart from Vale unless under the cover of darkness. And one more thing, Qrow.”

Ironwood's right hand shot out as quick as lightning, grabbing a fistful of Qrow's shirt and lifting him slightly off the ground. “Stop pushing my buttons.” He hissed at the dark haired Huntsman, whose eyes had snapped wide open in surprise. “Ozpin may have found you valuable enough to ignore your insubordination and childish behavior, but I have tolerated it far longer than I ever would have under different circumstances.” He lowered Qrow back to the ground. “While you are... A guest here, I demand that you act with respect.” He released his hold on Qrow's shirt. “I trust I have made myself clear.”

“Crystal,” Qrow grumbled. “Sir.” He added reluctantly, causing Winter to smirk. 

“Schnee, show our guest to his quarters, then prepare your things for the journey to Vale tomorrow.” The general's words caused the smile to quickly fall from Winter's face.

“You mean, you're sending _me with him?!_ ”

“Aw come on Winter. Am I really that bad?” Qrow winked at her as her cheeks bloomed scarlet with anger.

“I am not sending you with Qrow, Winter. You are accompanying me.” Ironwood looked from Qrow's bemused expression to the reappearance of Winter's smirk. “Schnee, I believe I gave you an order. Please see to it immediately.” The general tucked his hands behind his back and turned to face the lone window in his office, clearly signaling the end of the meeting. 

“Yes sir, General Ironwood.” Winter replied. She mustered every ounce of self control she possessed before turning to Qrow. “Per General Ironwood's order, I must now show you to your quarters. Please follow me.” Winter turned on her heel and exited the office. 

Qrow cast one final look in Ironwood's direction before following Winter out of the office. “Thanks, James.” He said over his shoulder as he closed the door behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have entirely too much fun writing Qrow, if you couldn't tell. Thanks for reading!


	4. Restless

“UGH.” Winter's outburst of frustration echoed slightly through the quiet rooms of the Schnee mansion. She shut the large entrance door forcefully and strode across the foyer to hang up her coat, her cheeks still pink from both the cold and her anger. She started towards the grand curving staircase in the adjoining room, planning on letting the day's events melt away in the soothing waters of a warm bath, when a voice called out to her from the other side of the great hall.

“Winter? What's wrong?” 

The woman turned to face her sister from across the room and forced a polite smile. “It's nothing, Weiss. Just... Let's call it a challenging day at the office, shall we?” She resumed walking towards the staircase when Weiss spoke again.

“Let me guess, Ruby's uncle is in Atlas again.” Weiss started forward, closing the gap between the sisters. “He's the only person I know of that can make you lose control of yourself like that.” She placed Myrtenaster and her training bag on a nearby table, a slight smirk on her face.

“That's classified information, Weiss.” The forced smile on Winter's face wavered for a moment, but it quickly returned. “How is your training coming along?” She glanced over her younger sister's figure, noting the beads of sweat on her forehead. “Have you been able to summon again?”

“Not really. I've tried using the focusing techniques you taught me, but...” Weiss let her voice trail off. _“But I just can't care enough to make it happen.”_ She thought, remembering how the immediate danger to her friends at the Battle of Beacon made it so much easier for her to use her semblance. In the training rooms in the eastern wing of the Schnee mansion, there were no threats, no catalysts to use as fuel to push herself to new heights. Weiss was tired of practicing her form; She felt no thrill in destroying stationary targets in quick succession. Training sessions with Winter were more energizing, but they were few and far between, given her older sister's important military position. 

The truth was, the only reason Weiss spent so much time in the eastern wing of the house was to stave off the crippling loneliness she experienced constantly in Atlas. 

Winter sighed, covering half of her face with her hand. “Are you sure you're doing it right? We've spent weeks on this. You have to clear your mind entirely, then bring the object of your summon, and only the object of your summon, into your thoughts. ” She looked up at Weiss, her expression gentle. “Which, I imagine, is a tall order right now. But any extraneous emotions or memories will dilute your effectiveness. It's very important that you start from a blank slate.”

Weiss lowered her eyes, mulling over Winter's choice of words. A blank slate. It sure felt like the canvas she had been painting with splashes of color over the past year had been yanked away from her, then returned with a fresh coating of white. 

“Did Qrow... say anything about Ruby? Or Yang?” Weiss asked, looking up to meet her sister's gaze. “Are they okay?”

Winter frowned slightly before answering. “That's classified.” It pained her to deprive her younger sister of knowledge of her Beacon teammates. “I'm sorry Weiss. I know you miss them.” She approached Weiss and placed a hand on her shoulder. “I can't tell you what I've heard. But I believe they're doing okay.” Winter smiled and nodded, hoping that her slight admission had soothed some of the worry Weiss was feeling. 

“I just wish I could see them.” Weiss sighed, staring at the floor again to keep her sister from seeing the pain in her eyes. “I mean, the last time I saw Ruby was when I helped her climb Beacon Tower, and then...” A blast of white light, and panic overtook her exhaustion. She had desperately wanted to climb the tower herself, to find her team leader- No, her friend- and help her, but it was then that Atlesian military personnel dragged her into her father's airship. She had screamed and kicked the entire way, begging the soldiers.

_“Please! Let me go, please! My team needs me!”_

_“We're under orders, Miss Schnee-”_

_“I don't give a damn about your orders! LET ME GO!”_

_“RUBY! YANG! BLAKE!”_

She screamed until she was sure that her throat was bleeding, until she saw bright pinpricks of light exploding in her vision from the effort, but all of it was to no avail. She had found herself aboard her father's airship, both hands pressed against the observation window, quietly sobbing as she looked out over the Grimm-infested streets of Vale. 

Under different circumstances, Weiss would be cringing at the thought of her undignified outbursts in the last moments of the Battle of Beacon, but the emotions that spurred her behavior had been left unresolved. She still didn't know what became of her teammates. She had heard bits and pieces of information in the past month- Ruby and Yang had been taken to their father in Patch, one of them missing her arm, and the other practically in a coma. No one had seen or heard from Blake since that night, but Weiss had seen the wet crimson stain on her white blouse around her abdomen while she lay on the pavement, clutching Yang's remaining hand. She had lost a lot of blood, and the idea of Blake alone and injured gnawed at Weiss. At least Ruby and Yang were with their father. Blake... As far as Weiss knew, she didn't have anywhere to go. 

“Um... Weiss?”

Winter's voice snapped her back to reality, and she shook her head vigorously. 

“It's nothing. Sorry.” 

Winter regarded her young sibling skeptically for a moment, hoping her silence would encourage Weiss to tell her what was on her mind, but it was clear that Weiss planned to keep those thoughts bottled up. Winter sighed. 

“I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this conversation short. It's been a long day, and I have to prepare for my journey tomorrow.” Winter turned away from Weiss and began to climb the staircase.

“Journey? You mean you're leaving?” 

She winced slightly at the sadness in Weiss' voice as she turned to face her. “General Ironwood has requested that I accompany him,” Winter hesitated for a moment. “On a mission to Vale.” She added meaningfully. 

Her sister's eyes grew wide, a spark of hope burning away her crestfallen expression, and a genuine smile came across Winter's face at the excitement overwhelming Weiss. She rushed up the stairs, stopping just below Winter.

“Are you going to see Ruby and Yang while you're there? When will you be coming back? Can I come too?” 

Winter's smile broadened for a moment. It wasn't often that Weiss let her enthusiasm run rampant like this, and after a long, lonely month spent locked away from the world, Winter was glad to see her little sister expressing any sort of positive emotion. 

A touch of sadness tainted Winter's smile as she replied. “You know it's not my call. I could ask General Ironwood, but you would still have to receive Father's permission to come along.” She reached out and rested one gloved hand on Weiss' shoulder. “I wish I could give you the answers you want, Weiss. I don't like seeing you like this.” 

“I know. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up.” Weiss said glumly, turning to retrieve Myrtenaster and her training bag from the table. “I guess I'll just head to my room. It's getting kind of late.” It was true; The sun sat low in the hills behind the manor, casting a vermilion glow over the snow-covered forests that sprawled for miles beyond the Schnee property. Weiss paused at the table, eyes focused on the sunset shining through the row of arched windows at the far end of the room. Maybe it was because Ruby had once told her how much she loved winter, or maybe she was just lonely, but something about the brilliant colors reflecting off of undisturbed snow and the first stars twinkling faintly in the darkening sky made Weiss long for the company of her team leader. She pulled her eyes away from the windows, picked up her things, and headed up the stairs.

“Weiss...” Winter began as she approached, but she shook her head. 

“It's okay. Really.” Weiss faked a smile without stopping. “Good luck on your mission, Winter.”

Winter watched Weiss as she climbed the stairs, turning right and disappearing down the hallway to her bedroom, before continuing on her way to the bathroom. She wished that she could tell Weiss more, that her team leader would be on Atlas soon, but she knew there was no guarantee that their father would allow Weiss to see Ruby. It was heartbreaking to see how her little sister's isolation was wearing her down, and Winter feared that before long, Weiss would return to the sad, despondent state she had been in before attending Beacon.

She sighed and continued to make her way to the bathroom upstairs. She resolved that upon returning to Atlas, she would make it a priority to spend as much time with her little sister as possible.

 

\-----

 

“Ugh.” Ruby grunted, kicking the covers off her body for the umpteenth time that night. It had been two days since her uncle had appeared, instructing her to stay put in Vale, and the young Huntress had developed a bad case of cabin fever. She sat up and squinted in the darkness, surveying the room.

Jaune lay asleep on his stomach in the bed next to Ruby, a thin stream of drool running down his cheek into a wet spot on his pillow. Behind Jaune, in a lump of blankets softly rising and falling with their breath, were Ren and Nora. They both started every evening in separate beds, but this wasn't the first time that Ruby had awoken in the middle of the night to find Nora had climbed into her partner's bed. She smiled at the sight of her friends enjoying a peaceful slumber, even if such rest eluded her tonight.

She climbed out of bed and started to get dressed, deciding that a short walk might help ease her insomnia. She quietly clicked Crescent Rose into its holster at the small of her back before exiting the room, taking extra care to not disturb anyone's sleep by making too much noise.

Ruby descended the staircase into the lobby of the inn, startling the man behind the desk with her sudden appearance. She smiled and waved as she headed towards the glass double doors that opened to the street. The man looked like he was getting ready to say something, but Ruby had already pushed open the door and stepped out into the soft yellow glow of the lampposts lining both sides of the street. 

“Hey Ruby!” A cheerful voice called out, causing Ruby to nearly jump out of her boots before whipping around to see Nora, seated against the outer wall of the inn with a small notebook in her lap. The redheaded girl smiled and waved. 

“Nora, don't scare me like that!” Ruby gasped, clutching her chest.

“Sorry.” Nora giggled. “What are you doing out here?”

“Couldn't sleep.” Ruby shrugged as she took a seat next to Nora. “What about you? I thought you were in bed with Ren again.”

Nora's cheeks flushed. “Oh, that? Um, I, uh... I have bad dreams sometimes. And when I do, I like to sleep with Ren-I mean, not _sleep with_ Ren, it just helps- being near him, you know?”

Ruby grinned and patted her friend's shoulder. “It's okay, I understand what you mean. I used to do the same thing with Yang when I was a kid.” Her eyes drifted down to the notebook in Nora's lap. “What's that?”

“It's my diary!” Nora beamed, holding the book up to proudly show off its battle-worn leather cover. “I like writing down what happens every day. Sometimes I just draw little pictures, but I think it's neat, to be able to look back and see what you were thinking months or even years ago. It helps me remember things too.” 

Ruby smiled. “What were you writing about? I mean, we haven't really done anything in the past two days.” She slapped a hand to her mouth immediately after realizing how intrusive her question was. “Sorry, I shouldn't have asked. It's none of my business.”

Nora tilted her head back, and eyes seemed to focus on a faraway point in the night sky. “It's alright. I was... I was writing about Pyrrha.” She lowered her head and ran a finger along the spine of her diary. “She was in my dream tonight- She's in a lot of my dreams lately, actually- and I know it sounds dumb, but I was just thinking about how we made plans to go shopping for new dresses after the Vytal Festival, and we were going to drag Jaune and Ren along on a picnic after it was all over...” Her voice broke and she shook the tears from her eyes. Ruby placed a hand on her shoulder again.

“Ruby... What happened that night? You never told any of us.” Nora turned to face her, cheeks wet with tears. Ruby bit her bottom lip, willing herself not to cry. She took a deep breath to collect herself before answering.

“Well... You know Jaune called me on his scroll, and Weiss and I took off towards Beacon Tower. We fought our way through the Grimm, and Weiss did that cool thing with her glyphs, letting me run up the side of the tower. When I got to the top, I-” Ruby choked as tears welled up in her eyes. She swallowed hard.

“I saw Pyrrha, on her knees- she had an arrow sticking out of her chest, and that- that _sound_ she made- and then she- she slumped forward and Cinder just-” Ruby sobbed, shaking her head.

“I don't know how she did it,” She whispered through her tears. “But somehow, Cinder put her hand on Pyrrha's circlet and then she- she just _disintegrated_ \- into all these bright orange sparks of light.” Ruby covered her face with her hands, struggling to regain her composure. Finally she wiped her eyes and looked at Nora. 

“After that... I woke up in my Dad's house on Patch. I'm sorry.” 

“It's alright, Ruby.” Nora whispered, reaching out to take her hand.

“No! It's not alright. I... I couldn't save her, Nora. I _failed_ her. I failed _you_ , and _Jaune_ , and _Ren_ , and...” Ruby turned away, biting her bottom lip again.

“Don't say that.” Nora said gently. “It wasn't your fault. Nothing that happened that night was your fault. All of us... We did everything we could.” 

“But... it wasn't enough.”

Nora sat quietly for a moment, resting her hand on Ruby's. 

“Maybe it wasn't enough to save Pyrrha, but- Ruby, you do know that you stopped that huge Grimm that was attacking the city, right?” Ruby turned her head to meet Nora's gaze. “It's easy to look back and see the people you couldn't save. But I know a lot more people would have died that night if that big Grimm stayed active any longer than it did.” Nora smiled and squeezed her hand. “You did _amazing_ , Ruby.” 

“Thanks, Nora.” Ruby smiled weakly, and the pair sat in silence. Ruby crossed her legs and rested her chin in her hands, mulling over Nora's words. She appreciated the effort and the sentiment behind them, but it didn't change how she felt. It didn't take away the memory of red bubbles of aura drifting out of Pyrrha's chest. It didn't keep her from wondering if those Ursai hadn't slowed them down in the courtyard, if she had climbed the side of the tower a little faster... 

Suddenly, Ruby stood up. She glanced up and down the empty street, past rows of dark windows reflecting soft yellow globes of light. 

“What's up?” Nora looked up at her friend, puzzled.

“I dunno. I've still got all this pent up energy, and that conversation didn't exactly do much to clear my head, you know? I think I'm gonna take a walk. You wanna come?” 

“Sure! I was starting to get kinda cold just sitting out here anyway.” Nora practically leaped to her feet, stuffing her diary inside her vest. Magnhild clinked against her armor as she walked down the sidewalk with Ruby, the sound echoing through the noiseless avenues stretching ahead of them. 

“It's _so weird_ ,” Nora mused, turning her head from side to side as they walked. “I mean, I know it's the middle of the night, but there's nobody around at all. It's like we're the only people left in Vale.”

“Yeah,” Ruby replied, distracted by the cloud of emotions still hanging over her mind. She pulled her hood up and veered right down a side street while visions of scattering ashes and hordes of Grimm filled her head. The images and memories continued to shift behind her eyes; a bloody bandage covering the stump of an arm, her friends laying injured and defeated on the pavement, invisible wires crushing limbs and shearing Penny's torso with a horrible metallic screeching... Panic, dozens of red eyes closing in from all sides...

“Uh, Ruby?” Nora piped up. “I think we should probably turn around.”

Ruby blinked and lowered her hood, glancing around in surprise. She had been instinctively following the streets of Vale back towards Beacon Academy, and judging by the broken state of the buildings and the dark stains on the pavement, they had wandered out of the safe zone. Ruby reached to unclip Crescent Rose from her back.

“I think you're right-” Ruby began, but froze mid-sentence as a shadowy figure darted across the road ahead of them. She frantically readied Crescent Rose in scythe form, focusing tensely on the alleyway the mysterious shadow had disappeared into. Something about the way that silhouette moved looked so _familiar_ , but...

Ruby shook her head. “No way.” She muttered under her breath.

“What?” Nora had removed Magnhild from her back, holding it at the ready in grenade launcher form.

“Did you see that? Up there, near the alley?” Ruby gestured with the blade of Crescent Rose to the place where the silhouette had dissolved into darkness.

“What was it? A Beowolf? Ursa?”

“No, it was- Blake?” Ruby called out as the figure shot across the road again. Ruby launched herself down the street at the exact moment a pack of Beowolves emerged from the alley in pursuit of the figure. Eyes wide, Ruby dug the heels of her boots into the pavement, skidding to a stop. 

The Beowolves immediately shifted focus and barreled towards the scythe-wielding Huntress, howling with bloodlust. Ruby planted the tip of Crescent Rose into the pavement, using her weapon as a makeshift pommel horse. She pivoted on her right arm, delivering a double-footed kick to the nearest Grimm. The Beowolf staggered backwards into its companions, causing them to stumble.

Ruby fired a single Gravity Dust shell after delivering the kick, sending her and her weapon spinning high into the air above the monsters. She landed gracefully, crouching on one knee as Nora let loose a volley of grenades that soared over her head, blasting the Beowolves further off balance. She pulled Crescent Rose taut like a bowstring behind her back, and suddenly, Ruby became a whirling tornado of rose petals and vengeance. She fired off Dust rounds with perfect timing, aiding her momentum as she mowed through the creatures of Grimm before her. One by one, the Beowolves fell beneath the glinting steel expertly wielded by the young Huntress.

As Ruby panted with exertion among the dissolving lifeless Grimm at her feet, a police truck screeched to a halt at the end of the street. Four men with Dust Rifles emerged, aiming their weapons at Ruby and Nora as a voice blared over the loudspeaker on top of the truck. 

“Halt! You have left the safe zone and are breaking curfew. Put down your weapons and identify yourselves!”

“Okay! Don't shoot!” Ruby cried out, folding up Crescent Rose and clipping it into her holster before thrusting her hands in the air. Nora followed her lead, slinging Magnhild over her back and lifting her hands above her head.

“Identify yourselves!”

“We're former students of Beacon academy! We just wanted to go on a walk and before we knew it, we were here, being ambushed by Grimm!” Ruby blurted out. The men looked at each other for a moment before lowering their rifles. One of them stepped forward.

“You mean, you two took out all those Beowolves on your own? Are you hurt?” The man asked. Nora and Ruby shook their heads rapidly.

“I'm glad to hear that. But you kids can't be out here. Come on, we'll take you home.” The man began walking back towards the police truck, beckoning over his shoulder.

“But I think I saw someone else out here!” Ruby protested, stamping her foot down. “They were being chased by those Grimm we fought!”

The man stopped and turned to face Ruby. “It was probably a White Fang operative or some other criminal. We'll find whoever it was. As for you two, we can either take you home, or take you to jail for suspicion of criminal activity. It's your call.”

“Home sounds nice.” Nora piped up and started towards the men, but Ruby narrowed her eyes. She knew that she could easily win a fight against the four officers, but that would cause more problems than it would solve. Besides, she _thought_ she had seen Blake- but she couldn't be sure. It had been too dark, and the silhouette had moved too fast for Ruby to clearly make out. All she had to go on was a gut feeling, and that wasn't a strong enough argument to warrant assaulting four police officers.

“Alright, fine.” Ruby surrendered, following Nora and the men into the truck. Nora gave directions to the driver while Ruby sat, staring at her hands in her lap. A question was nagging in the back of her head, and the implications of it sent small chills of fear through her chest. 

“Uh, sir?” She looked up at the officer seated directly across from her. The man raised his eyebrows slightly.

“Are the White Fang still in Vale? I mean, have you caught any of them since the Battle?” 

The man sighed. “We have had encounters with members of the White Fang, yes. Moreso in the days immediately following the Battle. Lately it's just been Grimm attacks on the outskirts of the city, but we have to assume that the White Fang still has operatives in Vale.”

Ruby looked away from the man, her breath catching in her throat. _“Have they been following us?”_ Ruby wondered, frantically trying to recall every moment of the past three days in Vale. She mentally mapped out all of the places she and her friends had visited- the docks, the riverfront in the commercial district... She shook her head. The four of them had been so _careless_ , lulled into a false sense of security by the relative calm of Vale's safe zone. The whole time they had been traipsing about the city, their enemies could have been watching, waiting for a time to strike.

 _“What if the White Fang isn't looking for us? What if they're here to try and find Blake?”_ Ruby felt the pit of her stomach twisting into knots as the thought occurred to her. Imagining Blake hiding from the White Fang in the dark corners of Vale, cold and alone, made Ruby want to jump out of the police truck and rush back into the Grimm-infested areas of the city to look for her teammate. 

The police truck came to a stop in front of the inn. Ruby and Nora climbed out, thanking the officers for the ride. 

“No problem, kids. Just do us a favor and stay in the safe zone, huh?” The driver said, nodding as he put the truck in gear. The Huntresses watched the truck pull away without a word before entering the inn and returning to their room. 

“Are you alright Ruby?” Nora whispered as they changed into their pajamas for the second time that night. Ruby shook her head and forced a smile. 

“I'm fine. Just... thinking. That's all.” Ruby replied as she laid down, staring up at the ceiling. “Goodnight, Nora.”

“Night Ruby!” She heard Ren mumble in his sleep as Nora climbed into his bed.

Ruby sighed, rolling over to face the lone window in their room. She didn't know if Blake was out there somewhere in the city, but she hoped that wherever she was, she was warm and safe for the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long to finish, but I hope it was worth the wait. Thanks for reading everyone! Comments are always appreciated!


	5. H(a)unted

_“Ugh.”_

The sound escaped Blake Belladonna's lips forcefully as she flopped back against the wall of the decrepit warehouse she had chosen to call home for the night. She reached into her pack, removing one of the protein bars she managed to scavenge from the abandoned buildings outside of Vale's safe zone. She tore into her meager rations for the day with an intensity that would have been embarrassing, had anyone been there to witness it. Seconds later, Blake stared longingly at the empty wrapper in her hand as her stomach rumbled. She briefly debated indulging herself by eating a second bar, but after rummaging in her pack and taking inventory, she decided that a full stomach was a luxury that she could not afford.

Blake shivered, pulling a tattered blanket from her pack and wrapping herself in it. Shafts of moonlight poured into the warehouse through windows set high in the walls, illuminating patches of debris on the floor and swirls of dust motes in the air. She watched the particles dancing in the beams of light, trying to ignore the growls coming from her abdomen. 

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall, visions of noodles and fish filling her mind. She moaned quietly, pulling her blanket tighter around her. She longed for a warm meal, or even just warmth; Winter in Vale was not the best time to live like a fugitive. 

It had been a particularly rough week for the Faunus. Supplies were getting harder and harder to come by, to the point that Blake was even considering a few... shopping trips into the occupied areas of Vale. The number of Grimm being drawn to the outskirts of the city was on the rise, which meant an increased police presence that she would have to avoid while scavenging for food. 

Not that any of Blake's time spent on the run in Vale had been easy. The first week after the Fall of Beacon was a never-ending fight, both against the waves of Grimm crashing into the city, and against the remaining White Fang agents keeping tabs on activities in Vale. In most encounters with the latter, she was able to simply duck out of sight before being spotted, but on two occasions, she had been caught by surprise.

Fighting the Grimm had been one thing. They were creatures of darkness, and when they fell to her weapons, it felt like the natural order of things. 

The Grimm didn't show fear in their eyes as Blake cut them down. 

They didn't beg for mercy. 

They didn't haunt her dreams.

 _“I had to. I had to. I had to....”_ The thought echoed through her head each time she had to wash the bloodstains from her shaking hands. 

And she did have to. Blake knew that any White Fang members still in Vale would be relaying information back to their leader. Once she had been seen, there was only one way to be sure that her location would not be passed on.

So she did what she had to do.

The worst part was that Blake could not even afford her attackers a swift death. She had used up the last of her Dust shells on the first day after Beacon fell, forcing her to use Gambol Shroud's blade to guarantee their silence.

She shook the memories from her mind before they caused her to vomit again. Not only would that be a waste of a day's worth of rations, but Blake remembered how quickly the Grimm had descended on her after cutting down those White Fang Faunus. Her despair, self-loathing and nausea had drawn the creatures to her like moths to a flame. If she wanted to sleep at all tonight, she would have to push those feelings aside. It was nearly impossible to forget a waterfall of blood cascading down a wolf Faunus' chest, or watching the spark of life fade from the eyes of a deer Faunus. But right now, ignoring those memories was vital.

Blake was _tired_. 

And according to the arrhythmic chattering of her teeth, she was also very cold.

She stood up, hoping that a little movement might help warm her up. She paced back and forth with her blanket over her shoulders, wishing she had picked a temporary shelter that was further outside the safe zone. As it was, Blake was too close to the city to risk starting a fire; The smoke and the flickering of the flames would arouse too much suspicion in the local police. Or worse, another White Fang member. She shuddered, physically ill at the thought of having to take another life.

She walked to the door of the warehouse, opening it slightly. She looked out through the crack, but the street in front of the building was empty. Aside from the odd skirmish between police and Grimm, the night was quiet. She shut the door and headed back into the warehouse, watching her breath rise in tiny puffs of fog in front of her.

Blake thought longingly of her bed in Team RWBY's dorm room back at Beacon. That bed had been the first comfortable place to sleep Blake had known since she was a child, before she had started attending White Fang protests. As she stood shivering in a drafty warehouse, Blake especially missed the warmth that radiated from her partner's bunk above her. Some evenings, the heat Yang generated above her made it nearly impossible to sleep. Blake would toss and turn, her sweat dampening the sheets to the point that she would rather sleep on the floor. Tonight, with only a ragged blanket wrapped around her shoulders, Blake regretted every second she had taken that warmth for granted. She began clearing debris from a spot in the corner of the warehouse with her feet.

After making the area as clean as she could, Blake laid down, using her pack as a makeshift pillow. She tried to push the thought of her teammates from her mind, but after tonight, it was hard to _not_ think about them.

It was true that hope of news concerning her teammates was part of the reason Blake remained in the broken down and ruined sectors of Vale. She took every available opportunity to observe the streets of the safe zone during the day, hoping against hope to see sunlight glinting off of familiar golden hair, or a red cloak fluttering in the breeze, but after her encounters with the White Fang, she had been extra careful to remain hidden on these reconnaissance missions. 

Which, of course, made it all the more infuriating that Ruby Rose had spotted her tonight. 

Blake rolled onto her back, covering her face with her hands as she relived the events of the evening. She had been scavenging for food in the upper floors of an apartment building near the edge of the safe zone when she heard footsteps slapping on pavement, the sound echoing through the stillness of the night. She tensed up, tiptoeing to the nearest window with Gambol Shroud in hand. Golden eyes searched the streets below for any sign of movement. Ears perked up, attempting to pinpoint the direction the noise was coming from. 

She quickly identified the general direction of the footfalls. Blake raced down the central staircase of the building and out into the streets, gluing herself to the shadows of the buildings as she silently headed down the street towards the disturbance. The footsteps grew louder as she approached.

Blake was less than ten feet from the intersection with the street that was the source of the footsteps when several things happened at once. The footsteps from the street ahead stopped, replaced by the sound of female voices. Blake didn't hear what those voices were saying, though. She was too busy focusing on the low, rumbling growls that emanated from behind her. 

Those growls only meant one thing: Grimm. 

Blake knew three things in that moment; One, she had not yet eaten that day, and was likely too weak to fight off whatever monsters had gathered behind her. Two, even if she did have the strength to fight, the noise would draw the attention of whoever was in the street in front of her. Three, the sporadic cloud cover on this particular evening meant that if she moved quickly enough, she could cross the street ahead in darkness, without anyone but a Faunus being able to make out any details. 

And if the people in the street were Faunus, that probably meant Blake had bigger problems than the creatures of Grimm behind her. 

She coiled herself against the bricks of the building she had been clinging to, then shot across the street and into the safety of an alleyway on the other side. She continued running down the alley as fast as her worn out legs would carry her, but skidded to a halt as a familiar voice carried through the cold night air.

“Did you see that? Up there, near the alley?”

_Ruby._

There was no mistaking it. Her team leader was in the street she had just crossed. Ruby Rose was the source of those echoing footsteps that had drawn Blake away from her scavenging. 

As she attempted to fully process this information, another female voice cut through the silent night air. 

“What was it? A Beowolf? An Ursa?”

That voice was familiar too, but before Blake could put a face and a name to it, at least a dozen glowing red eyes emerged from the darkness in front of her. Her heart leaped into her throat as she spun on her heels. Blake knew she would be heading right towards the Grimm she had originally been running from, but the immediate problem was the horde of monsters right there in the alley with her. She gathered her remaining strength and bolted back across the street in front of Ruby and her companion. As she powered down the avenue towards the unknown Grimm, she heard a faint cry from the street she had just crossed.

“Blake?”

Her heart once again jumped into her throat as she forced her legs to carry her even faster. Her lungs burned from the monumental effort, but stopping or even slowing down was not an option. Blake had to put as much distance as possible between her and Ruby. 

The road she was running down terminated in a T intersection. As she rounded the corner heading right, she heard the unmistakable concussive blasts of Crescent Rose as her team leader engaged the Grimm that caused Blake to flee from the alleyway.

A blur of abandoned buildings and dark side streets later, Blake found herself in the warehouse. It wasn't ideal, but the soreness in her muscles told her that it would have to do.

Blake rubbed her eyes again before rolling back onto her right side. She tucked her hands under her pack, barely registering the way the rough concrete floor scraped at her skin.

_“Blake?”_

That rising inflection as Ruby called her name was the only thing that gave Blake Belladonna hope. Ruby had been unsure of what she had seen, and with any luck, she would decide that her eyes were playing tricks on her and no, she had not seen her teammate skulking around at night outside the Vale safe zone. 

If not, Ruby would come looking for her. And Blake could think of very few things worse than her friends trying to seek her out right now.

She slipped her right hand out from underneath the pack and ran her fingertips across the scar on her abdomen. The words of Adam Taurus rang in her ears. 

_“I'm going to destroy everything you love.”_

With seven simple words, Blake's former partner had torn her world to shreds. Not only had he given Blake the scar underneath her fingers, he had delivered one perfectly-timed slice and...

Blake squeezed her eyes shut tightly, shaking her head. It was too painful to relive the memory of Adam attacking Yang, but even as she tried to block them out, images flashed through her mind.

Flames reflected off of a silver and red mask.

Yang sailing towards Adam, her fist drawn back and ready to strike. Were those tears in her eyes?

The crimson sword blade that had been buried in her stomach just moments earlier humming through the air with terrifying speed and precision.

Aura, like molten gold, flowing freely from what remained of her partner's severed arm, dissolving into the atmosphere.

Blake buried her face into her pack as hard as she could, trying to will away the tears in her eyes.

_“I'm going to destroy everything you love.”_

Those seven words were the reason Blake was all alone, quietly crying in a cold, dirty warehouse in Vale. They were the reason Blake prayed with all her might that Ruby would not come looking for her, no matter how badly she wanted to see her friend. They were the reason that Blake had murdered two White Fang members over the course of the past three weeks.

She knew that she should leave Vale immediately. The longer she stayed, the more likely she would be found, either by her enemies or by her friends. At this point, neither option was appealing. But she couldn't bring herself to leave the city behind. Not without knowing her teammates were okay.

She knew Ruby was alive and well. Weiss had been taken away on a Schnee Dust Company airship and was presumably safe back on Atlas. But what about Yang? 

Until she knew that her partner was okay, there was no chance Blake would move on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the long wait between chapters. I would love to be able to post updates on a regular schedule, but my job is both demanding and unpredictable. I really like the way this chapter turned out though, and I hope you do too! I would really appreciate it if y'all could leave me some feedback!


	6. Confrontation

The late afternoon sun cast a golden haze across the kingdom of Vale, giving a false appearance of warmth as it cascaded across snow-covered rooftops. Ruby Rose pressed a hand to the window beside her, her touch lingering long enough for her fingers to start going numb while her eyes wandered across the beautiful landscape beyond the glass. The sight was everything Ruby loved about winter distilled into a single image, but she found it difficult to properly enjoy it under the current circumstances. She sighed and removed her hand from the frigid glass. It would be dark very soon.

“You okay Ruby? You barely touched your food.”

She pulled her eyes away from the window and regarded Jaune.

“I'm fine. Just getting a little antsy, you know? I didn't expect us to stay in Vale so long... And I didn't expect it to feel this weird, being back here,” Ruby replied, flexing her hand to restore warmth to her fingers.

Jaune nodded, pushing bits of fried potatoes around on his plate. “Yeah... I know what you mean.” He set his fork down and leaned back in his chair. “It doesn't feel right., just sitting around downtown Vale while who knows what's going on out there.”

Ruby shrugged a little, gazing around the nearly empty restaurant that served as the top floor of the inn she and her new teammates had been staying in for the past four days. A little flutter of hope rose in her chest every time she caught a glimpse of red and grey fabric, only for her heart to sink again when she realized it was not her uncle here to save her and her teammates from dying of boredom. Or worse.

“Well, Ruby and I took down some Grimm last night! So we're not just here doing nothing,” Nora babbled while Ruby frantically waved her arms, silently pleading the redhead to stop talking. Nora slapped a hand over her mouth, but it was too late. 

“What?!” Jaune and Ren cried out in unison, causing the couple at the table next to them to drop their utensils loudly on their plates. Ruby planted her elbows on the table and rubbed her eyes.

“We couldn't sleep. So we went for a walk last night, and we got turned around and ended up outside the safe zone. We ran into a pack of Beowolves.” Ruby muttered under her breath, avoiding Jaune's gaze.

“You mean, you two just decided to run off by yourselves, in the middle of the night, without telling us?!” Jaune whispered furiously. Ren was staring at Nora, saying nothing, but his eyes clearly displayed his anger and disappointment. 

“It wasn't like that!” Ruby cried, dropping her hands to the table. “I couldn't sleep, so I went outside for some fresh air, and Nora was already out there! We talked for a little bit, but I was still restless so I asked her if she wanted to go on a walk! We didn't try to leave you guys out of it, it just kind of happened!” 

Jaune's anger wilted a little at the pleading tone in Ruby's voice, but he met her eyes with a stern glare as he replied. “With all the chaos and turmoil going on out there? Even though our enemies managed to infiltrate Beacon less than a month ago? Ruby, that was a terrible idea.”

A pair of hands descended on Ruby's shoulders, making her jump. “Gotta agree with the tough guy over there, kid. You really pulled a bonehead move last night.”

“Uncle Qrow?! How long have you been standing there?!” Ruby shrieked as she whirled around to face the man standing behind her chair. He smirked and rolled his shoulders.

“Long enough, Rubes. And you four have been here long enough, judging by that story. I'd better get you out of here before you get into any more trouble. Go back to your room and pack your things, then meet me in the lobby in 45 minutes.”

“What? Why 45 minutes?” Ruby raised an eyebrow. “We can be ready to leave in 10.”

Qrow grinned, but his smile didn't quite extend to his eyes. “This is the big leagues, kid. Fighting our enemies is important, but not nearly as important as doing mundane things at their designated time. You know, depending on who you ask, anyway.” He winked at his niece, who was unable to hide her bewilderment. 

“What are you talking about? You're not making any sense!” Ruby threw her hands up in exasperation. Qrow laughed.

“Calm down, pipsqueak. We've got a nice long flight ahead of us, there'll be plenty of time to answer your questions. Now, go pack your things, and be ready to leave in...” Qrow squinted at the clock hanging on the other side of the restaurant. “...42 minutes. Don't be late.” He turned and walked out of the restaurant.

 

“So... Does your uncle always just... show up like that?” Jaune asked as the four young warriors finished packing the last of their belongings. Ruby cast a sidelong glance his way and shrugged.

“Ever since I can remember, yeah. Qrow would be gone on missions for months at a time, and then one day he would just be in our kitchen when I woke up. He never called while he was out hunting, but somehow he was always there for me and Yang's birthdays.” Ruby smiled a little. “One year he showed up dressed as an Ursa without telling anyone he was coming. Dad nearly killed him.”

Jaune rolled his eyes. “Yeah, he seems like such a swell guy.”

Ruby zipped up her knapsack and swung it over her shoulder before turning to face Jaune. “Look, I know you two got off on the wrong foot, but Qrow means well. He's just rough around the edges.”

“Yeah, maybe he's only a jerk when he's drunk.” Jaune snorted, forcefully stuffing the last of his clothes into his pack and slamming the dresser drawer shut, causing his companions to jump.

Ruby's eyes went wide. “Jaune? What's wrong?”

“Nevermind,” He muttered under his breath. “Ren, time check.”

“Uh... Three minutes to departure.” Ren looked back at his team leader, confusion and fright etched on his face. “Why won't you tell us what's wrong?”

“Look, we don't have time for this. We need to get going.” Jaune said over his shoulder as he swiftly crossed the room, threw open the door, and stomped off down the hall. Ruby, Nora, and Ren stared at each other, thunderstruck at their friend's outburst.

“I've... never seen Jaune act like that.” Nora said quietly, biting her lower lip. “Do you think it's our fault, Ruby?”

Ruby shrugged halfheartedly. “I don't know, Nora. But I plan on getting to the bottom of it.” 

Ren cleared his throat. “One minute to departure. We have to go.” He said, ushering Nora towards the hallway while Ruby followed.

Ruby cast one last glance around the hotel room, overwhelmed by the feeling that it would be a long time before she spent another night in Vale. 

 

Ruby sighed, a puff of fog escaping her lungs and floating off into the chilly night air. Qrow had been leading the four young fighters through twisting, overgrown woodland paths for more than an hour of uncomfortable silence. Between Jaune's behavior back in Vale and Qrow's staunch refusal to tell her anything about his plan, Ruby was beginning to feel a little anxious. She decided to try and coax some answers out of her uncle once again.

“How much further?” Ruby's voice broke through the darkness, not nearly as clear and commanding as it had sounded in her head moments earlier, only to be met with a firm “Shh!” from Qrow. She pressed on.

“Seriously, Uncle Qrow, you haven't told us anything. Where are we even going?” 

The footsteps in front of her came to a halt, and Ruby heard her uncle curse under his breath. 

“Ruby, do you not trust me?” Qrow asked while rummaging in his pockets for his flask.

“Of course I trust you, but-” Ruby started to reply, but Qrow cut her off.

“Then it shouldn't matter where we're going, or how long it's going to take to get there.” He took a deep gulp of liquor and put the flask back in his pocket. “So please be quiet before you attract any unwanted attention to our little traveling party here.”

“Oh yeah? What if I don't trust you?” Jaune's voice cut through the night air, full of tension. Qrow chuckled.

“Look, tough guy. I'm just gonna chalk up your behavior as of late to the grieving process. But the fact is, Ruby trusts me. So it doesn't matter if YOU trust me. It only matters that you trust Ruby. Now, can we keep walking? It's not exactly an ideal night for a romantic moonlit stroll.” Qrow started walking again.

“Don't talk to me like a child!” Jaune shouted, rustling some unknown creatures from their slumber and causing them to run off noisily through the underbrush. Qrow stopped dead in his tracks, turned on his heel and marched towards Jaune, stopping only when he was face to face with the defiant young Huntsman.

“Listen to me, damn it. Your arrogance and wounded pride are a beacon of negative emotion drawing every Grimm within a quarter mile radius directly to our location.” Qrow gripped Jaune's shoulder and narrowed his eyes threateningly. “All I'm trying to do is get us off this continent without one of us becoming a midnight snack for a King Taijitu. Now stow your baggage, shut your mouth, and get moving.” 

Jaune opened his mouth to protest, but his eyes snapped wide open in shock as Qrow grabbed a handful of his shirt and lifted him off the ground. “Was it the wording I chose, or the tone of my voice that made you think there was room for negotiation here? I gave you an order. Either follow it, or go off into the woods and ask the nearest Beowolf to reunite you with your girlfriend in eternity. I don't particularly care which.” Qrow released his hold on Jaune, who stumbled as he hit the ground. Ruby, Nora and Ren stood speechless as Qrow stalked past them and continued down the path.

“I don't hear any footsteps! We're already behind schedule, so let's get moving folks.” Qrow called over his shoulder as Nora, Ren and Ruby rushed to Jaune's side to help him back up. 

“Don't touch me!” Jaune shoved away his friends and pushed himself to his feet, then stomped after Qrow.

“Jaune! Wait! Are you okay?” Ruby called out, jogging to catch up with him with Nora and Ren on her heels.

“Yeah, he sure means well, doesn't he, Ruby?” Jaune spat without looking at her. “He's just a little rough around the edges, right?”

“Jaune, I'm sorry!” She cried.

“Stop talking to me.”

“Jaune! Please!”

“I said, stop talking to me!” Jaune shouted. He pulled his hood up and stuffed his hands in his pockets, ignoring Ruby's pleas. After a few more attempts to get Jaune's attention, Ruby and the others fell silent, following the sound of Qrow's footsteps ahead of them.

Ruby felt absolutely rotten, like everything that happened tonight was her fault. Part of her knew that Qrow was right, that Jaune 's behavior stemmed from grieving the loss of Pyrrha, but then, that was her fault too, wasn't it? She didn't reach the top of Beacon Tower in time, and because of it, Pyrrha was dead. 

Ruby squeezed her eyes shut tightly, trying to blink away the tears and wishing briefly that she had never left home to go on this journey. Before she could finish that train of thought, the group entered a small clearing that suddenly lit up like the summer sun. An Atlas military airship sat in the middle of the clearing, its engines humming to life as the boarding ramp descended from the passenger bay. A man and a woman walked down the ramp towards the five travelers, the lights of the airship behind them obscuring all details but their silhouettes.

Once the pair reached the bottom of the ramp, Ruby gasped as she recognized General James Ironwood and Winter Schnee.

“Ruby Rose, Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren. Please board the airship at once. We are twenty three minutes behind schedule and we must land on Atlas before the sun rises. Winter, please show them to their quarters. Qrow, I would like a word with you.” Ironwood delivered this speech curtly, turning to ascend the ramp with Qrow close behind. 

“We're going to Atlas?!” Ruby asked, her jaw agape.

Qrow shrugged. “Trust me, it's not that great.” He said as Ironwood led him into the ship.

Ruby met Winter's icy blue eyes, and the older woman nodded in return. “Please follow me to the passenger cabin.” She said, leading the group onto the airship. 

“Winter? Is Weiss here?” Ruby asked tentatively.

“No, she is at home.” Winter replied over her shoulder.

“How is she doing?”

“She is... safe.” Winter chose her words carefully. 

“Can I see her?”

“I'm afraid that is not my decision to make, though I believe Weiss would enjoy a visit from you all.” Winter said, holding open the door to a small cabin containing two sets of bunk beds with privacy curtains strung around them.

“We shall be on Atlas within five hours. Feel free to rest here.” Winter nodded as Ruby, Nora and Ren filed into the room. Jaune stopped at the door and looked at Winter.

“Any chance I can get my own room?”

Winter's eyes widened momentarily. “Excuse me?”

“Nevermind.”

Jaune walked into the room and climbed onto the top bunk.

“Jaune, please talk to us.” Nora pleaded. Jaune pulled the curtain around his bed in reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah. I'm still alive. I've been struggling to write lately, but I've learned that sometimes you just gotta force yourself to sit down and do something, otherwise you'll put it off forever. So, here's the next chapter. 
> 
> Poor Jaune. =(


	7. Atlas

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

The passenger cabin was deathly quiet, save for the rhythmic sound of the wall clock as it continued its endless journey. Ruby Rose lay awake in her bunk, certain that none of her three companions were sleeping either. There was too much tension in the room. 

“Ugh, you know what? This is stupid.” Ruby said, sitting up and moving to the edge of the bed. “Come on, guys. We need to talk.”

Ren and Nora peeled back the curtain on their bed. “Finally, that silence was killing me!” Nora said, climbing out of the bunk and taking a seat next to Ruby.

“I agree. We need to discuss this move.” Ren nodded, crossing his legs under him and facing the girls.

“Right, but that's not really what I meant.” Ruby replied, brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Jaune, 'we' means you too. Come talk to us.”

Jaune snorted from behind the curtain surrounding his bunk, but did not emerge to join the group. Ruby sighed.

“Jaune, look. I'm sorry. I'm sorry me and Nora ran off last night, and I'm sorry that my uncle is such a jerk. Please come down and talk.” Ruby looked expectantly at Jaune's bunk, but the blond still refused to come out from behind his curtain.

“Jaune, please. We need our team leader!” Nora pleaded.

“No you don't.” Jaune said quietly. “Just let me sleep. Please.”

“Jaune, we know you weren't sleeping.” Ren said kindly.

“Yeah, you snore like crazy!” Nora chimed in, less kindly.

“Jaune, please come down. We just wanna know what's wrong.” Ruby said sadly. “We're worried about you.”

Silence continued to hang heavily in the air, and Ruby was nearly ready to give up any hope of Jaune coming out to talk when the curtain around his bed finally pulled open and he slid to the floor. Ruby, Nora and Ren eyed their friend expectantly.

“It would take less time to tell you guys what _isn't_ wrong.” He sighed, leaning against the bunk. “I don't even know where to start.”

Ruby frowned. “I know what you mean, Jaune. I'm sorry.”

Jaune blinked. “Why? This isn't your fault.”

“It kind of feels like it is.” Ruby whispered, staring into her lap and fidgeting with her hands. 

“I don't understand.”  
The young Huntress took a deep breath. “Well, for starters, my uncle seems to be part of what's bugging you, and he wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me.” She looked up at Jaune. “I know that's not the only thing that's bothering you, but... that all feels like my fault too. You asked- begged- me to save Pyrrha, and I couldn't do it. My semblance is speed, and I still wasn't fast enough. I failed you, Jaune. I failed all of you. I failed Penny, and Pyrrha, and Yang and Weiss and Blake and Ozpin and now we're stuck on an airship because I didn't even make a plan before asking you guys to come with me and I don't know what's coming next!” Ruby was hyperventilating now, her friends staring wide-eyed in confusion. “I'm so sorry, guys. I'm sorry for everything. I wish I could take it all back.” She buried her face in her hands, her body racking with sobs between rapid, shallow breaths. Nora gently rubbed her back, not knowing what to say. 

The four of them sat quietly while Ruby regained her composure. When the sobbing had abated, Jaune spoke up.

“Ruby, look at me.”

She obediently removed her hands from her face, straightening her posture, silver eyes meeting blue. Tears were rolling down Jaune's cheeks.

“I'm sorry I haven't been here for you.”

Ruby's eyes betrayed her shock. Whatever reaction she had expected from Jaune, this certainly was not it.

“No, Jaune, don't-”

The blond shook his head. “Don't do this. You don't have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders alone.” He took a shaky breath, using the pause to swiftly wipe tears from his eyes. “I've been so withdrawn, so focused on my own pain that I couldn't see anything else. Pyrrha... Pyrrha was my best friend.” A fresh jolt of anguish surged through Jaune as he spoke the name of Pyrrha Nikos aloud for the first time since her death, and he squeezed his eyes shut tight. “But... She was your friend too.”

“I don't know the details of what happened on top of Beacon Tower that night. And truthfully? I don't think I could handle knowing. All I know is that now, more than ever, we need each other. So I'm sorry I've been so distant.” Jaune sat down on the bunk next to Ren and placed a hand on his shoulder. “That goes for you two, too. You're my teammates. You're family. And I owe all three of you some answers.”

“It's okay, Jaune. We know you... lost your partner. I can't even begin to imagine what that feels like.” Ren replied, his face going pale at the mere thought. He shared a quick glance with Nora before returning his attention to his team leader.

Jaune shook his head slightly as he dropped his hands between his knees, leaning forward. “It's not just that. It's... Well, remember Initiation day? When Ozpin launched us all into the Emerald Forest? Pyrrha's the only reason I didn't die that day. I was totally helpless, tumbling through the air like a ragdoll. Pyrrha saved me. But that's not all. She also unlocked my Aura.”

Nora gasped, whipping her head around to stare at Jaune. “She did?” The redhead asked in disbelief. 

Ren, eyes wide and a hand over his mouth, looked at his team leader with both horror and sorrow. “I'm so sorry Jaune. I had no idea.” He whispered once his voice finally returned.

Ruby looked at her three companions, bewilderment etched on her expression. “I'm sorry, I guess I... don't know what that means.” She said quietly.

“It means that Pyrrha and Jaune were... Bonded. Their souls were linked.” Ren explained, but he wasn't looking at Ruby as he spoke. Instead, his eyes were focused on Nora with an intensity the young Huntress had never seen before. 

Suddenly, a lot of things made a lot of sense to Ruby Rose, and a fresh wave of tears spilled from her eyes. “Jaune, I'm-”

Jaune held his hand up. “Ruby, please. If I stop now, I don't think I'll be able to finish.” 

“It's... hard to explain how it feels to be Bonded with another person. It's kind of like... all their feelings and thoughts are things that happened to you in a dream that you don't quite remember. They're faint echoes, ghosts of memories.” Jaune sighed, rubbing his eyes with his left hand.

“And when that connection gets severed, it feels like a Giant Nevermore punched its way through your chest.” A gruff male voice said quietly from the doorway of their cabin, causing the four of them to jump. “You feel hollow, like all the color in the world has been drained away and you'll never be warm again. A piece of your soul just went missing, and you'll never get it back, at least not while you're still breathing.” 

Qrow walked into the room and took a seat on the floor. He uncapped his flask, took a quick swig, then offered it to the blond man glaring daggers at him. “I'm sorry, Jaune. I didn't know you two were Bonded.” Jaune looked from the flask, back to Qrow, and back to the flask before taking it. He took a drink, capped it, and handed it back. 

“So do you still hear her voice all the time? I bet it's worst just as you're falling asleep and right as soon as you're waking up.” Qrow took the flask back from Jaune, stowing it in a pocket. 

“...Yeah. How did you know?”

Qrow laughed quietly, but there was a deep sadness in his eyes. “It's been many years, but the voice of my old partner still haunts me every night and every morning. It hurts worst when I hear her laughing me awake from a nightmare. I wish I could tell you it gets easier, but it doesn't. It just kind of becomes... normal. Some days, it's a comfort to hear her again. Other days, it's pure agony. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.” 

Qrow rested his chin in his hands and glanced at Jaune again. “How long were you and Ms. Nikos bonded? A little less than a year, right? I don't mean to sound cold or callous, but be thankful it wasn't long enough for you to truly experience a Bond. Those nebulous half-memories and almost-feelings you were talking about earlier? They get clearer. Bonded partners, given enough time, can communicate ideas without ever opening their mouths. They both experience the same emotions, though the emotions transmitted through the Bond are rarely quite as strong as those that originate in your own soul. Some can even share images and memories, but that's extremely uncommon and sometimes... more of a curse than a blessing. A Bond is one of the most incredible things you can ever experience. It's amazing, to be so intimately connected with another person, and a pair of Bonded warriors on the battlefield are nearly unstoppable. But in order to take its rewards, you also have to accept the risk.” He fished the flask from his pocket and drank deeply from it before rising to his feet.

“I'm sorry I interrupted. I wanted to come by and talk about our next move. I didn't know you'd be having a moment.” Qrow winked at Ruby before turning to leave. 

“Wait! Uncle Qrow!” Ruby stood up and latched on to the tail of the older man's cloak. “Your partner that you Bonded with... Was it... my mom?” She asked quietly.

Qrow stopped and turned around, meeting Ruby's gaze. “Yeah, kiddo. It was your mom. Summer Rose was a truly remarkable woman. I'm sorry you didn't get to spend nearly enough time with her. For what it's worth, I know she'd be incredibly proud of the person you're growing up to be.” He smiled softly, ruffling his niece's hair. “Me and your dad sure are.”

Ruby bit her lower lip in hesitation, but she had to know the answer to her next question. “Were you and my mom ever... you know-”

Qrow laughed and shook his head. “Were we 'together-together'? Nah. Your mom was way too smart to fall for a guy like me. I don't blame you for asking though; It's pretty unusual for a Bond to exist between two people that aren't in love.

“I didn't fit in very well at Beacon... I didn't have many friends. But Summer was always there for me. She looked past all of my foolish outbursts and antics, and dug deep to find out who I really was. She understood me in a way nobody else did, not even my sister or your dad, and that was even before we were Bonded.” Qrow sighed. “I never really knew _why_ she cared about me the way she did, but... I guess that part's not really important.”

Ruby turned to look at her friends. Ren had crossed the room to sit next to Nora, while Jaune continued to look at his hands between his knees. The question of _why_ she cared about them, and why they cared about her, never would have occurred to the young Huntress. The whole concept felt alien and unrelatable, but it crept under her skin. Did they all have reasons, _motives_ , for being in her company? Was friendship just a means to an end? Did everyone else in the world think this way?

“You... do have a plan here, right? Atlas is kind of far away from Mistral.” Jaune spoke up, mercifully pulling Ruby away from her thoughts. She shook her head vigorously to clear the negativity that seemed to cloud her mind more and more frequently these days. 

“Of course I do.” Qrow smirked. “Traveling by air is much quicker and safer than spending months walking across a frozen continent. Our enemies have agents everywhere. Atlas is the most secure kingdom for the time being, and conveniently the only one that still has operable airships. I'll be honest with you, I don't know how long we'll be in Atlas, but trust me, it's just a pit stop.” Qrow looked up at the clock on the wall.

“Speaking of which, we should be arriving in about three and a half hours. You lot should get some rest. This Atlas trip won't be a vacation- Though I don't have any clue why someone would _want_ to vacation on Atlas anyway....” The lanky Huntsman shoved his hands in his pockets and started walking towards the door.

“Oh, and Ruby? Jaune's right. This isn't all on your shoulders. I'll see if I can get you a little face time with your Partner while we're here. I think you both could use it.” With a final wink, Qrow disappeared into the hallway, leaving the four friends in silence once again.

Ren was the first to speak up. “He's right. We really should get some sleep.” He held out his hand to Nora, leading her to their shared bunk. It was obvious now, that he and Nora were Bonded. The way the color had drained from their faces while Qrow talked about that connection being broken spoke volumes. 

Ruby and Jaune shared a look, but neither of them spoke before climbing into their bunks and drawing the curtains. She heard the click of the light being turned off, and then everything was quiet once again. Ruby stared at the bottom of the empty bunk above her, and in the stillness, her brain kicked into overdrive once again. Despite all of the new information and ideas she had been presented with over the past 12 hours, only one thought was really important to her right now.

_Weiss._

Her partner. 

Her friend.

With everything that had been going on in the past few weeks, Ruby had barely spared a thought for the heiress she had cultivated a friendship with during their brief stay at Beacon, and she felt terrible about it.

A flash of memory came back to her as she lay in the darkness. 

_It was late in the evening towards the end of the first semester. Ruby had completely forgotten about an essay Dr. Oobleck had assigned, and she rushed to the Beacon library to find a book about the history of Vacuo. She hurried towards the research wing when a glimpse of white out of the corner of her eye caused her to stop. It was her partner, seated at one of the communications terminals, her elbows on the desk and her head in her hands._

_It was a stark contrast to the way her partner usually carried herself, head held high(and her nose in the air, depending on who you asked), and Ruby could immediately tell something was off. She backed up a couple of steps and walked towards the desk where the heiress was seated._

_”Are you okay, Weiss?”_

_Weiss flinched a little bit at the unexpected voice behind her. She turned slowly to face the younger woman._

_“Oh, hi Ruby. Just... another phone call from my father back in Atlas. It's nothing, really.”_

_Ruby frowned a little, debating on whether or not to accept the way her partner shrugged off her line of questioning. She decided that a little more gentle prodding wouldn't hurt._

_“Are you sure? You look... tired. And sad.”_

_Weiss regarded her with an unreadable expression, and Ruby was bracing herself for a blast of anger when Weiss closed her eyes and sighed, rubbing her temples._

_“It's exhausting, Ruby. I dread calls from home. They're not ever good news.”_

_“Oh,” Ruby replied quietly, taking a seat on the desk in front of her partner. “Do you... wanna talk about it?”_

_Weiss opened her eyes and looked up at Ruby. She opened her mouth, but couldn't seem to find the words she was looking for. She shut her mouth and looked away from her partner. Finally, Weiss spoke again._

_“I'm sure a lot of people... envy me for the way I grew up. Or at least the way they think I grew up, anyway. Rich. Spoiled. Every need and whim catered to.” Weiss returned her gaze to the girl sitting on the desk in front of her. “The truth is, I'd trade places with them in a heartbeat. I'd give anything to have grown up the way you and Yang did.”_

_Ruby blinked slowly, a tightness in her chest making it hard to breathe, but she didn't look away from her partner. “That bad, huh?” She nudged, inviting Weiss to open up to her further._

_“For as long as I can remember, I've always had these... expectations placed on me. I had to be the best at everything. It was demanded of me. From a very young age, I was loaded down with lessons of all sorts- combat, singing, etiquette... I never had time to make friends.” She snorted and shook her head. “Not that it mattered... Even when I did meet people, they all had expectations too. My name and my status set up an image of me that I had to live up to, and I hated it. Growing up like that... fond memories of home are very few and far between.” She finished, glancing back up at Ruby._

_The younger girl frowned at her partner, desperately wanting to make her feel better. But Ruby was a much better blacksmith than wordsmith. “I'm sorry you had to go through that, Weiss. It must have been really lonely.” She finally managed. Weiss smiled sadly._

_“It's okay. I'm here now, away from all that. Coming to Beacon was_ my _decision, and I intend to make the most of it.”_

_Weiss stood up, prompting Ruby to hop off the desk, and the pair of them started walking back towards their dorm room. They were halfway back when the heiress put her hand on Ruby's arm, stopping her in her tracks._

_“Wait a minute. Why were you in the library this late anyway?”_

_Ruby's silver eyes grew wide as saucers as she gasped. “Ohmygosh Oobleck's essay!” She squeaked, and disappeared back down the hallway in a flurry of rose petals._

Ruby rolled on to her side as the words of her teammate echoed in her head. 

_”Fond memories of home are very few and far between.”_

And now, there Weiss was once again. Trapped in a house full of bad memories, alone. It made Ruby's heart ache to think about how her partner must have felt since the Fall of Beacon.  
Ruby closed her eyes as a gentle snoring filled the cabin, and she made a promise to herself as she drifted into sleep. 

_”I'm going to come find you, Weiss. No matter who or what tries to stop me.”_

 

\-----

 

A series of loud knocks at the door of their cabin jolted Ruby and her friends awake from an all-too-short slumber. 

“Rise and shine, everyone. We're here.” Qrow's voice sounded from the hallway. 

“Noooo...” Nora moaned softly, clutching Ren tightly and further entrenching herself in her blanket.

Jaune and Ruby emerged at nearly the same time and shared a glance. Both of them had bags under their bloodshot eyes, but Ruby had a suspicion that Jaune hadn't slept at all on the flight.

After gathering their belongings and rousting Nora from her nest, the four companions followed Qrow and General Ironwood out of the airship, rubbing the sleep from their eyes.

Ruby gasped as the loading ramp lowered to reveal the massive military complex. The buildings were coated in a light dusting of snow, reflecting the pink and golden hues of the day's first light. It was breathtakingly beautiful, and the young huntress wanted to remain rooted to the spot to enjoy the sunrise in its full splendor.

“Welcome to Atlas Military Headquarters,” General Ironwood said with a wave of one gloved hand. “I'm afraid that I can't personally show you around the base. Winter, please take our guests on a small tour of the facilities. Don't forget our meeting at 9:30. Qrow, if you would follow me...” Ironwood signaled as he began descending the ramp. Qrow slouched a little bit, but did as he was requested. 

He nudged Ruby with his elbow as he passed. “I'll catch up with you later, pipsqueak. Don't try to break into the armory, they're kinda sensitive about that.” He winked, making his niece giggle.

“I do not intend on showing our guests where the armory _is_ ,” Winter said wearily.

Qrow scrunched up half of his face. “Well that's boring. See you guys later.” 

Ruby watched as her uncle followed General Ironwood into one of the nearby buildings. 

Winter cleared her throat. “Now, firstly, I will show you to your quarters so you may stow your belongings.” The tall woman started down the ramp, both hands austerely placed behind her back. “Please follow me, and do pay attention to the route we take. The complex can be difficult to navigate.” 

Ruby and her companions trailed behind Winter, entering a large building on the opposite side of the landing pad. Upon entering, the group's ears were assaulted by the whirring of machinery and loud clanging of metal tools. The building's main floor was a single room, packed tightly with industrial manufacturing equipment and workbenches. Dozens of workers in drab gray uniforms milled about, shaping raw metal into weapon components. 

“Most of our equipment is manufactured off-site, but high-priority items are created here.” Winter explained over the noise as the group walked down the main aisleway bisecting the facility. “Weapons, armor, munitions, and prototype equipment.” 

Ruby, ever the weapons enthusiast, was trying to look at everything going on around her all at once. “It's so cool!” She exclaimed, a bounce in her step. 

Winter glanced over her shoulder at the excited young huntress behind her, a slight smirk on her face. “Yes... 'cool',” She repeated, her condescending tone taking the wind out of Ruby's sails. 

The group reached the other end of the factory and exited through double doors into a brightly lit hallway. 

“So, uh, do we need to pass through that area... often?” Jaune asked tentatively. 

“No,” Winter replied over her shoulder. “The manufacturing facility is normally off limits. It is simply the quickest indoor route to the barracks from the landing pad.” 

The four young companions followed Winter in silence. Ruby couldn't help but compare the elder Schnee to her younger sister. They both walked stiffly and with an air of confidence bordering on arrogance, though Weiss did her best to rid herself of that behavior during their time at Beacon. It did make sense for Winter to carry herself in that manner, Ruby reasoned; She was a military specialist, after all. 

They wound their way past countless offices and laboratories, Winter making small remarks as they walked. Ruby noticed more and more similarities between the Schnee sisters the longer she spent with Winter. Small turns of phrase and subtle hand gestures that Weiss had picked up over the years jumped out at Ruby, bringing a small smile to her face. 

The group came to a halt at the mouth of a long, wide corridor. Both sides were lined with rows of utilitarian beds, immaculately made. The room was spotless, much like the rest of the military base they had seen on their tour. Winter led Ruby and company towards the other end of the corridor. 

“These are the barracks. Infantry sleep in this common area. The guest quarters are at the other end of this room, and I'm sure you will appreciate that they are much more... private than this.” Winter stopped in front of a door with a large silver 2 emblazoned on it. 

“This room was prepared for your use while you are guests here. Please drop off your bags, then we shall proceed to the cafeteria. No doubt you all are rather hungry after your journey.” Winter said, wrinkling her nose slightly as if Nora had chosen to make her stomach growl loudly at that particular moment. 

The young warriors-in-training did as they were asked, and after another short walk, they arrived at the cafeteria. 

“Unfortunately, I am unable to join you for your meal. I have to prepare for my meeting with the General. I trust you all can find your way back to your quarters after you have finished. Qrow and I will meet you there to show you to the training grounds.” Winter nodded curtly and turned to leave. 

“Excuse me, Winter?” Ruby piped up, prompting the older woman to turn back around. 

“Yes?” 

“Can I ask you a favor?” 

Winter's icy blue eyes, so very similar to her younger sister's, widened slightly. Ruby's cheeks flushed and she averted her gaze. 

“Can you... Can you tell Weiss I said hello?” 

A pang of guilt passed through the military specialist, though she did her best to conceal it. She put on a polite smile before replying. 

“Ms. Rose, I'm hoping that you'll get the chance to do that yourself soon. Enjoy your meal.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry about the long waits between chapters. Life has gotten extremely hectic for me, and writing was the last thing on my mind. I really missed it though(and Volume 4 has had me on a pretty heavy feels trip these past few episodes...), so I've decided to try and make as much time as possible for this fic. Thank you all so much for reading and understanding! I hope you enjoy! I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter as well. :)


	8. Crossing Paths

Weiss tightly gripped the handle of Myrtenaster with her left hand and in one smooth motion, dropped to one knee and plunged the tip of her weapon into the training room floor. She clenched her jaw tightly, clearing the clutter from her mind and bringing a single memory into sharp focus. 

_Weiss stood in the center of this very room nearly two years ago, avoiding her father's angry gaze. Instead, she stared at the failed prototype of an Atlesian heavy combat droid that sat next to him, a first generation Atlesian Knight. It was bent on one knee, head bowed in a gesture of allegiance to her father. Weiss fought back the feelings of revulsion that threatened to overwhelm her._

_”So you wish to attend Beacon Academy? You fancy yourself a huntress?” Her father asked, his voice dripping with disdain. “Prove it to me then.” He sneered, snapped his fingers, and turned his back on his daughter. The colossal droid beside him slowly rose to its feet, the screech of metal-on-metal filling the practice hall._

_“If you survive, you may attend Beacon.” He spat, slamming the door to the practice hall as he left._

The silver haired huntress shut her eyes against the mental strain, trying to remember every single detail of her battle with the Knight. 

_The Knight brandished its sword with both hands, stepping towards Weiss and delivering a crushing overhead blow. Weiss quickly dodged left, drawing her own weapon. She readied her fighting stance and launched herself at the Knight, striking its chest and backflipping over its head._

_The Knight spun around to retaliate, its enormous blade humming through the air. For all its size, the Knight was not very fast, and Weiss used this to her advantage._

_She activated her glyph, using it to propel herself behind the Knight in a blink of an eye. Before the Knight could turn around Weiss had leaped into the air, delivering a rapid series of slashes and stabs to a gap in its armor near the shoulder._

_It turned out to be one strike too many as the Knight swung its weapon before Weiss could evade the attack. Her aura absorbed the savage blow that sent her sliding backwards halfway across the training hall, but before she could recover her poise, the Knight came crashing down towards her from above._

_Weiss flipped sideways out of the Knight's path just as its sword slammed into the training room floor, sending chunks of expensive marble flying. In one smooth motion, the Knight then slashed horizontally. Weiss backflipped away from the assault. She wasn't quick enough. The Knight delivered a backhanded slash that caught her in midair, sending her sprawling to the floor._

_Before she had even finished sliding across the room, Weiss sprang back to her feet. She summoned another glyph and shot forward, landing multiple hits on the Knight's legs before it could react. Her foe staggered from the blows and Weiss used a glyph to launch herself into the air, hitting the Knight with a piercing strike at its jawline. A glyph appeared midair, and she fired herself at the Knight, slashing at its chest as she passed._

_The Knight followed her movement, swinging its sword with one hand at the huntress-to-be. Weiss used a glyph to leap over the sword, but the Knight followed through with a devastating punch that caught her square in the face. She flew backwards, painfully bouncing across the marble._

_Staggering to her feet, Weiss felt blood dripping from her face and realized that her father had not been joking. The Knight was genuinely trying to kill her, and it had just shattered through her aura like sugar glass._

_She took a deep, calming breath and brandished her rapier towards the Knight. The Dust chambers at its hilt spun quickly, charging the blade with fire energy as the Knight ran full tilt towards her._

_The gigantic sword of her opponent sailed through the air in a downward arc, ready to strike the killing blow, but Weiss was ready. She expertly timed her block with the release of the Dust round, and the percussive blast sent the Knight's sword arcing backwards._

_The Dust chambers spun again, this time charging the blade with a pulsating blue glow. Weiss stabbed her weapon into the marble at her feet, and a wave of ice crystals erupted forth, freezing the Knight in place._

_This time, Weiss was prepared for the Knight's blade slashing towards her in a broad horizontal arc. She ran forward and jumped onto the blade, rolling down its length and landing a direct hit on the droid's hand before leaping away. The sword tumbled through the air and landed point first in the floor._

_The force of her attack had shattered the ice holding the Knight in place. It ran towards her, fists ready to strike._

_A blue glyph appeared underneath Weiss, and just before her enemy's attack could crush her, she rolled out of the way and activated the glyph. The Knight launched into the air, only to be frozen in place by more glyphs._

_Weiss soared into the air into her waiting glyph. The Dust chamber of her rapier spun once again, loading a deadly charge of lightning energy, and the heiress sprang forward with devastating speed. She punched clean through the chest of the Knight, sending it tumbling to the floor where it shattered upon impact._

_Breathing heavily, she took a moment to look around the wrecked training room. There were holes in the floor and ruined metal components everywhere. Finally, she walked out of the room and headed upstairs to her father's study, proud and defiant._

_Weiss knocked on the door, and her father, for once, answered it himself. He looked down at his daughter, at the blood streaking down the right side of her face and spattering her white overcoat, at the triumphant look in her eyes, and he snorted in dismissal._

_“Very well then,” He muttered wearily, almost as if he were disappointed that Weiss had survived. He turned around and shut the door, leaving Weiss alone in the hall, exhausted and crushed._

Weiss raised her free hand to her face. She traced the scar over her right eye, concentrating on the foe that had given it to her. A large glyph formed below her feet, glowing bright white. Five feet in front of her, a matching glyph appeared and began oscillating slowly.

“I'm glad to see you're still working on your semblance, Weiss, but you need to relax.” 

Weiss snapped open her eyes at the sound of her sister's voice. The glyphs on the floor flickered briefly before shrinking into nothingness as her shoulders slumped.

“I'm pretty sure I almost had it that time.” The younger woman sighed, drawing herself to her feet and stowing her weapon in her sash.

“Weiss, I've been standing here for ten minutes.” Winter replied, unfolding her arms from behind her back. “The tension and strain you put yourself under when trying to summon actually restricts your effectiveness. You must strike a balance between-” 

“Focus and tranquility. I know. You've said it a hundred times and I still can't get it through this thick skull of mine.” Weiss ran her fingers through her hair and turned away from her sister, walking towards the large, ornate window at the end of the hall. “Maybe I'm just the first Schnee born without the ability to summon.” Weiss whispered, shrugging halfheartedly.

Winter's eyes softened. “Nonsense, Weiss.” She stepped forward and placed both hands on Weiss' shoulders, giving them a reassuring squeeze. “You're growing into a great Huntress.” Winter smiled as her younger sister met her eyes. “Walk with me, Weiss. Let's get out of this room. You spend more than enough time here as is.” 

Weiss returned the smile and followed Winter out of the training room and into the entrance hall, grateful for the distraction. Winter stepped purposefully towards the front door, gathering her coat. Weiss stopped in her tracks, her gaze darting up the staircase towards her father's study, then back to Winter.

“What are you doing? Father won't let me leave. I'm lucky he lets me out of my bedroom.” Weiss said furtively, eyes focused on the top of the stairs again.

Winter pulled on her jacket and handed Weiss a similar one. “I know how badly you want to leave this place. And you know as well as I do that Father has a routine that he very rarely breaks. It's 6:03 PM right now. He won't be leaving his study for at least two hours and fifty-seven minutes. We've got plenty of time.”

Weiss bit her lip worryingly as she met her sister's eyes again. Winter was right, of course; she [i]did[/i] want to escape the walls of Schnee manor, and Father [i]did[/i] spend every evening poring over charts and books in his study...

Her heart thumped in her chest, both from fear and excitement. Winter gently shook the jacket she held outstretched towards Weiss, raising her eyebrow.

The temptation was too much. Weiss snatched the jacket from Winter's hand, a broad grin spreading across her face as she quickly put it on. Winter returned the smile.

“That's what I thought. Let's get going.”

Five minutes later, the Schnee sisters were in the back of Winter's private car, breezing through the outskirts of Atlas. Weiss pressed her face against the cold glass of the window, drinking in the sights in the last fading light of the sun. It was simply another evening in Atlas; lights were flickering into existence in the windows of modest houses, and small groups of people milled about near the occasional storefront, but it all felt new and exciting to Weiss. This was the first time she had left the grounds of Schnee manor since Beacon fell, and even something as mundane as watching a family exit a supermarket with groceries was enough to bring a smile to her face.

“Where are we going?” Weiss, unable to pry her eyes from the scenes happening outside the car, addressed her sister without looking at her.

“I need to check up on something at the base, and then, we can go wherever you would like.” Winter replied. A smile played at the older woman's lips, thrilled to see Weiss so animated and thoroughly enjoying herself. 

“Ugh, we're going to the military base?” A hint of disgust had entered Weiss' voice, and Winter had to stifle a laugh. She cleared her throat before replying.

“Weiss, I know you don't approve of my work, but I still have responsibilities. It will only take a moment. Besides, isn't it nice to be anywhere but home right now?”

“Well.... Yes, I suppose.” Weiss replied. The scenery outside was changing. The car had left the neighborhoods on the outskirts of the city and was now traveling down a desolate single lane highway lined with orange streetlamps. In the distance, the lights of the Atlas military base shone brightly.

The car passed through multiple security checkpoints before pulling into an underground parking garage. Winter stepped out of the vehicle and led Weiss through winding corridors.

“How do you find your way around this place? It's like a maze.” Weiss asked as they passed more meeting rooms and offices. 

Winter smirked. “You get used to it pretty quickly, believe it or not.” Winter turned right at the next intersection, leading Weiss into a large room lined on both sides by bunk beds. She stole a glance at her younger sister as they approached a door marked by a large silver number 2. Weiss could hear murmurs from behind the door, but they were quiet and indistinct. 

“Do I need to wait out here?” Weiss asked, glancing around the barracks.

“Nonsense,” Winter smiled as she knocked on the door and the mutterings within ceased. Footsteps approached from the other side. 

“Who is it?” A chipper voice called from inside the room. Weiss recognized it immediately, her breath catching in her throat. She whipped her head around to look up at Winter, eyes wide in disbelief. Winter simply grinned and nodded her head. 

Weiss felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. She swallowed thickly, took a deep breath, and finally found her voice.

“Ruby?” She half-whispered. “Is that you?”

Suddenly, the door flew open. 

“Weiss?!”

And there she was, Ruby Rose, eyes wide and hopeful, that huge, infectious grin plastered on her face. Weiss could hardly believe it. Before Ruby could say another word, she sprang forward and wrapped her arms as tightly as she could around her partner, who quickly reciprocated. She buried her face in Ruby's neck, breathing in the subtle scent of roses and vanilla, desperately hoping this was real and not another one of the dreams that had tortured her since returning home.

“Ruby, I can't believe you're here.” Weiss choked out, barely able to contain the tears of joy welling up in her icy blue eyes. “You're really here.”

“I missed you too, Weiss,” Ruby wheezed. “But I can hardly breathe.”

“Sorry.” Weiss laughed nervously and loosened her grip, but found herself reluctant to fully let go of her partner. She was afraid that the minute she did, the morning sun would peek through the curtains of her bedroom and wake her up from this incredible, lovely dream. Finally, she leaned back and stared into Ruby's silver eyes, letting her arms fall to her sides. In her peripheral vision, she caught sight of the others; Jaune, Ren and Nora.

“What are you all doing here, Ruby? Where's Yang? Have you heard anything about Blake?” Weiss asked quickly, wiping a couple of tears from her cheeks.

Ruby laughed as she turned to lead her partner into the room. “Come in and sit down. We'll tell you all about it.”

“I will let you all take a moment to catch up.” Winter smiled as she closed the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing continues to be a tremendous struggle for me. This chapter has sat unfinished for months. I'm hoping that by posting it, I can finally move past this garbage writer's block that's been plaguing me.
> 
> For everyone that comes by and reads this, but especially for those who have been reading and following this fic since I started it well over a year ago, thank you so much. Thank you for caring about my work. Thank you for your patience. I hope I don't let you all down.


End file.
